Return To Action
by KJ
Summary: Sequel to Viva Las Vegas. Kim/Tommy. Kim and Tommy's quiet life in Reefside is interrupted when an old rival of Kim's returns. After Kim thwarts her yet again, she sets her sights on Earth and destroying everything Kim has ever cared about.
1. A Call From Phaedos

**Disclaimer:** All Power Rangers characters belong to Disney. Everyone else, unless otherwise mentioned, belongs to me.  
**Author's Notes:** This is the first chapter of the sequel to "Viva Las Vegas". The name of the chapter is "A Call From Phaedos", and it picks off right where "Viva Las Vegas" ends. This is the introduction chapter, setting up the plot for the story. "Return To Action" is going to be more action oriented with more plot twists for our favorite rangers. I hope you guys enjoy it. As always reviews are appreciated.  
Also thanks to KSuzie for giving me some ideas for the plot. I'd been looking for an action story to do with the Vegas plot and she got me started on this one.

Power Rangers  
"Return To Action"

Kim and Tommy stood in his command center. Tommy was staring at her, waiting for her to say to answer the message. She couldn't believe that Dulcea was contacting her there. Thinking about it she could believe it, it was just kind of unexpected.

"Do you want me to put her through?" Tommy asked still waiting for his fiance to respond

"Yeah, of course, put her through." Kim said stepping in front of the small communications panel Tommy had set up

She watched as the black screen dissolved and Dulcea's face came through. She stood in warrior stance with Phaedos as her backdrop, holding the tiny communications orb in her hands. "Kimberly." she spoke as she saw the image of the former ranger

"Dulcea." Kim greeted nodding at the master warrior in front of her. "What's going on?"

"Cerlina has returned." Dulcea spoke quickly. She watched as Kim stiffened then she continued. "She's trying to get to the temple. I need you to return immediately."

It didn't seem fair. Kim's life was perfect and now this. But she wasn't going to ignore the life that had been chosen for her. She owed Dulcea, not to mention she had unfinished business with Cerlina. "I'll be there soon." she promised

Dulcea simply nodded as she ended the transmission. As the screen faded back to black, Tommy turned toward the woman he thought he knew. "Kim?" he questioned. She turned toward him and her brown eyes softened from the concerned look she had while speaking with Dulcea. "What's going on?"

Kim sighed. There was a lot to tell Tommy. There was a lot she hadn't told him before, mainly because she was told not to tell anyone. The risk of other's knowing who she is was too great. She wanted to live her life peacefully on Earth unless she was needed. And now she was needed.

"I'm sorry Tommy." she apologized. "But Dulcea needs me."

"That part I kind of understood." Tommy said reaching out and grabbing her hands with his and pulling her close. "I don't understand why Dulcea needs you." he said emphasizing the you

Kim pulled away from Tommy's grasp and turned her back on him for a moment, letting out a long sigh. She was afraid that he wouldn't understand, afraid that she wasn't meant to have love in this lifetime.

She closed her eyes and turned back to Tommy, opening them once more. "What I haven't told you, what I haven't been able to tell you, is that I spent five years of my life training with Dulcea on Phaedos."

Tommy was stunned by her words. "That's impossible. You were on Earth. I know for a fact that you were here, you've been in the public eye."

"Noone here knows. Dulcea brought me to Phaedos for five years and I returned to Earth two hours after I left. It was the dead of the night, I wasn't gone long enough for anyone to miss me." she explained

"Why would Dulcea pick you?" Tommy questioned. Not that Kim wasn't a good ranger, it just didn't seem to make sense to him, why the master warrior of Phaedos would want the former pink ranger.

"I'm not the same Kim you dated. I've changed. My time on Muiranthias in Maligore's pit changed me." Kim spoke. At the time she didn't realize that her time spent in the pit would alter her life so much. Lerigot had purged her of all evil from her time in the pit but he couldn't undo the changes to her DNA.

Noone knew about it, not even Jason. As far as she could tell he hadn't felt the burden of the effects on his DNA. Only Kim was the chosen one, the one meant for great things in this universe.

"What are you talking about? Lerigot reversed the effects of Maligore's pit." Tommy was quick to point out. At least he thought he did. Even Zordon and Alpha confirmed that they were back to normal.

"Not all of them. He couldn't undo the changes to my DNA. Zordon knew, but he couldn't say anything to anyone. When the time came I was to learn of my destiny and go through my training. I wasn't allowed to tell anyone because it was important that noone knew who I was until the time was right." Kim tried to explain to Tommy hoping he'd understand

Tommy was surprised and hurt among other things. He wished that he had heard of this before now, that she would have said something. He let out a long sigh before he asked the next question. "What is your destiny?"

"I was trained to be a master warrior. I am supposed to use my powers, my training, to be a guardian of the universe, to keep the balance between good and evil. It was too risky to tell anyone until they thought I was ready to be called into action. People's lives would be at stake if my secret was revealed. I hope you can forgive me for not telling you." Kim said briefly making eye contact with him before shifting her glance toward the ground

Tommy snorted. "This coming from the woman making jokes about us being geriatric rangers." he spoke the first thing that came to his mind

"I haven't aged since I completed my training. I have a greater purpose to accomplish, a meaning in life. I don't know when I will complete my path, serve my purpose, but once I do I'll age the last fifty years of my life and pass away just like I would've had I not been made a master warrior and a guardian." Kim explained

"Not just like you would. I thought we would have kids and grow old together and watch our grandkids grow up, now you're saying that's not going to happen." Tommy said feeling as though his dreams of the future were being shattered

"I'm frozen at age twenty-eight. I can still do everything a twenty-eight year old woman can, like have kids. I just won't be able to grow old with you. I'm sorry Tommy. I still love you and want to be with you if you'll let me." Kim said tears forming in her eyes

As a ranger Tommy knew that if both Zordon and Dulcea said something was to be kept from everyone you loved, then you had to keep it a secret like it or not. He understood that part, but it was still a lot to take in. The woman he wanted to marry wouldn't grow old with him. Instead she would be doing double duty as one of the guardians of the universe, one of the people picked out by the powers that be to devote their time in life to keeping the universe balanced. They would spend their whole lives fighting the good fight.

Part of him was jealous. He thought he was being trained for great things. He'd love to have an opportunity such as Kim's. Although he wasn't completely sure his own tenure with the rangers was finished and he was anxious to see what destiny still had in store for him.

He sighed as he spoke to Kim. "So this thing with Cerlina, what is that?"

"Cerlina was there when I was training with Dulcea." Kim started her explanation before taking a deep breath. "She was supposed to be training to be a master warrior as well. Dulcea spent more time with me, as I had far more important duties than just being a master warrior that Cerlina wasn't aware of. She hated the fact that the girl she thought off as nothing more than a snotty Earthling had become Dulcea's right hand."

Tommy nodded and Kim continued. "She spent two and a half years there with us and the anger built up. Finally she exploded and went after me. We fought, I won, and she took off after that swearing her revenge on us. From what I've heard she turned evil and continued her training. It's been years and noone has heard from her until now."

"So you have to go to Phaedos to stop Cerlina from attacking and taking over the temple?" Tommy questioned as the pieces of the puzzle were starting to fall together

"Yes I have to get up there quickly and help." Kim replied

Tommy stood and looked at Kim sternly. "I want to go with you. I've got a lot of ranger experience, I can help."

"Tommy this is my fight you don't need to go." Kim said giving him somewhat of a smile

"You're going to be my wife. And as my wife your fight is my fight." Tommy assured her

Tommy's words were enough to make Kim feel like everything was going to be alright. He still loved her and wanted to marry her. He wanted to stand by her side during her battles. Although this was Kim's fight, Tommy may prove helpful as he is a master ranger. "Ok." Kim said simply smiling at him and holding out her hands. "Are you ready to go?"

Tommy nodded and took her hands in his. "Hang on tight." she said. The duo glowed in a soft purple light and then they were gone.


	2. Preparations For Battle

**Author's Notes:** This is chapter 2 of Return To Action titled Preparation For Battle. Hope you all enjoy. As always reviews are appreciated.  
Also, in case you haven't read my profile page I wanted to let everyone know that I was in the process of making a huge move to another state. Fortunately I was able to get a chapter of Return To Action up before things got too hectic. But if you write a review and don't get a reply for a while, that's why. What the move means for the fics is that those of you reading Legacy are going to have to wait a few extra weeks for the next chapter. However once we get settled in I won't be working as much so chapters should come faster than before (in theory lol). I do have ideas for the next few chapters of Return To Action so hopefully when I get time to sit in front of the computer again you'll get some really exciting material (and possibly longer chapters).

* * *

As the purple light around the duo faded, Tommy looked around to see that they were on Phaedos. "How did you do that?" he questioned confused on how they had arrived so quickly

"It was a power given to me. It's hard to be a guardian of the universe if you need a spaceship to get around it." Kim said flashing him a quick smile

Tommy raised an eyebrow. "Any other powers I should know about?"

"You'll find out in due time." she promised

For a brief second Kim's words reminded Tommy of Zordon. He couldn't believe that they had been together for the last few months and there was this whole other side of Kim that he hadn't seen before, that he hadn't been allowed to see before. It amazed and excited him and made him realize that they had more in common than he thought they did. All these years he just assumed that the ranger in Kim was retired, yet here she was as if nothing had changed since high school.

"Kimberly." Dulcea spoke, getting the duo to turn around and face her. "And Tommy." she greeted nodding in his direction. "It's good to see you again. I only wish it was under better circumstances." She shouldn't have been surprised to see Tommy with Kimberly here today. Tommy was still strong throughout the ranger community and she had always sensed that Kimberly still had feelings for him. It only made sense that Zordon's two greatest warriors were here together.

Tommy nodded back toward Dulcea. "It's good to see you again too." And considering that the first time they met was under dire circumstances, he wasn't surprised to find that this time was no different.

"Unfortunately we have no time for pleasantries. Cerlina's here and moving quickly toward the temple." Dulcea said quickly switching topics to the task at hand

"Has she been here?" Kim questioned gesturing to the ancient ruins of the Ninjetti Temple that they were standing on.

"No she has yet to move into any place where I can fight her. I have only sensed her presence. She has gone straight through the jungle and is seeking the great power. You must find her before she can get there and gain access to it." Dulcea told Kimberly, looking at her young apprentice. Kim looked back at her with a determination in her eyes that made the warrior convinced that she was up for the task ahead.

"If she gets to the power..." Kim said her voice trailing off. She glanced over at Dulcea knowing that there was no need to finish the sentence.

Tommy glanced from one warrior to the other. He didn't know the specifics of what would happen if Cerlina reached the great power, but he wasn't stupid. Someone evil gaining access to something like that would mean total destruction.

"Does she have any Cryobots with her?" Kim asked trying to fully comprehend what she was up against. Cryobots were the army that Cerlina had picked up on the way. They were deadly and difficult to disable, but not impossible to defeat. However Kim would much prefer that they hadn't made the journey as it would be easier to fight just Cerlina.

"I haven't sensed any." Dulcea said glancing down at Kim. "But that doesn't mean there are not any on the way."

Kim nodded, she was well aware of the fact that Cerlina could be waiting to ambush her or Dulcea with waves of the Cryobots. "I'll be careful." she assured her. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. She was trying to use her abilities to sense Cerlina like Dulcea did. That would make tracking her much easier.

Before Kim had a chance to really get going she was interrupted. "So where are we going?" Tommy asked

"We are not going anywhere. Noone knows Cerlina better than me. I can track her quickly and take her out before she gets to the power." Kim said. This was her responsibility. Cerlina was a powerful warrior, and one who was hell bent on revenge against Kim. She didn't want Tommy to come out with her, to risk his life against her for a battle that wasn't his to begin with.

"I'm going to help you." Tommy said crossing his arms and glaring at her, using the tone that would make any one of his rangers straighten up and take note

However Kim was not one his rangers and would not be intimidated by him. She was amused by him trying and surprised that he thought he could get away with using that tone on her. "Stay here."

"How exactly is that helping?" he questioned raising an eyebrow and glaring at her

"Because Cerlina still has Cryobots out there and it's quite possible that they will come here for Dulcea. She won't be able to stop them if they get past her and go out in the jungle after me. She'll need your help." Kim said. That was partially the truth. If Cerlina wanted to, she could send her Cryobots right to Kim and surpass Dulcea completely. And Dulcea didn't need Tommy's help, but if enough of them attacked she would definitely want it. And Tommy would be the only one who could chase them if they rushed past the ruins and toward the power.

"What about you?" Tommy asked not letting up on the look he was giving her

"I'll be fine." she assured him. "And if I get into trouble I'll just teleport myself out." That was, of course, the last possible solution. Kim was not about to run from a fight with Cerlina and not about to back down, especially if it meant giving her access to the power.

"Fine." Tommy agreed. As much as he didn't like the idea he thought it was probably best for him to stay and help Dulcea if needed. Besides Kim had abilities and training, and all he had to protect him was some martial arts skills and a powerless Dino Gem. "Just promise me you'll be careful. I still want to have someone to marry when this is all said and done."

"I promise." Kim said as she walked over toward him and lightly put her hand on his cheek, leaning into him and giving her a kiss. Tommy grabbed her and pulled her close, kissing her harder before letting her go.

Kim smiled at him as she walked back to the edge of the ruins, closing her eyes and trying to concentrate on Cerlina again. Kim was a novice at this particular skill, only having a little practice in her time training with Dulcea. Dulcea could immediately sense any intrusions on Phaedos. Kim had to concentrate hard on her subject, and even then it took time. Finally her eyes flew open. "I got her." Kim said and with determination she headed toward the path which led down the side of the ruins.

"Good luck." Dulcea called to her as she headed down to the path

Tommy walked up and stood beside Dulcea as Kim's head was disappearing from view. He crossed his arms and waited until Kim was out of earshot before he spoke. "And may the power protect you." he added, hoping that she would win her battle and come back to him in one piece


	3. Enemies Attack

**Author's Notes:** This is chapter three, Enemies Attack. It's about the start of the battles. I hope everyone likes it and as always I love hearing from you all.

* * *

As Kim left Tommy quickly found himself pacing around the ruins of the Ninjetti Temple. It was hard for him to let his fiancé go fight this foe without him going with her to help. Now here he was feeling useless and pacing around worried for her safety. Of course he didn't even know if it was necessary to worry. He didn't know what kind of powers, what kind of abilities she possessed.

"Is everything alright Tommy?" Dulcea questioned as she watched the former leader of the power rangers walk back and forth

Tommy stopped pacing and regarded her for a moment. "There's a lot going on. A lot to take in. And I'm worried about Kim."

Dulcea nodded, expecting that to be his answer. "You do not have to worry about Kimberly. She is a strong warrior. I have no doubts that she will be able to successfully fight off Cerlina."

"What if these Cryobots attack? What is she going to do then? I should've gone with her, I should be there to help her." He knew Kim gave him her reasons for him not to go, but he should've never listened. He would still be able to help if she got into trouble.

"If Kimberly gets overwhelmed I am certain she will call for our help." Dulcea assured him. Kim had the ability to telepathically call to Dulcea if she needed to. It was something she was still learning how to do and she didn't have the ability to do it across vast distances yet, but when she was on Phaedos she was pretty good at it.

"Yeah." Tommy agreed although he wasn't exactly sure how she was going to do that. "If she needs me I'll find a way to help her."

Dulcea nodded. She knew it must be hard for a ranger of Tommy Oliver's status to sit on the sidelines and watch while someone he loves goes off to fight the great battle without him. It must be even harder with her having powers and abilities and him having nothing. He had great things still left for him as a ranger and his being here with Kim may have been what he needed to get things started.

Dulcea turned her attention back toward the former ranger's dilemma. "We will have to wait and see." She said, not keen on the idea of him rushing off into battle no matter how good he was. She watched as Tommy started pacing again with a huff and she smiled.

They continued to wait on the ruins for word from Kimberly. As Dulcea watched Tommy, she suddenly got a strange sensation. There was a disruption above Phaedos. She couldn't yet tell exactly what it was, but it wasn't strong. There was a possibility that Tommy would be needed in battle and she had to figure out a way to make him useful.

It would be possible to restore his Ninjetti powers, although she didn't think that would be the best course of action as without training one couldn't access their full potential. On top of that Tommy's DNA had bonded with his Dino Gem and there was no telling how it had been altered or how it would react with the Ninjetti powers. Thinking about the Dino Gem got her thinking about a second possible solution.

"Tommy do you still carry your Dino Gem with you?" Dulcea questioned

Tommy stopped and looked at her curiously. He didn't know why that mattered. The strange thing was that he did carry it with him. He didn't know why, as far as powers went it was still as useless as it was the day they drained the gems to destroy Mesogog. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the black gem for Dulcea to see. "Yes. Why?"

"May I?" she questioned as she walked over toward him and extended her hand out. Tommy nodded as he dropped the gem into her open hand. Dulcea looked it over, hoping that her idea would work. It was only a theory after all.

Attached to her side was a small pouch. She reached into it and grabbed some of the dust it held, dust that in itself was full of great power. She sprinkled some of that onto the gem and watched as it started to shine with life again. "This should be enough for you to morph." Dulcea said returning the gem to Tommy

Tommy looked at it curiously before glancing over at her. "You restored it's power? I thought that was impossible."

"It's only temporary. It's good for one morph but there's no guarantee how long that will last. But it is the only thing I can do for you in case Kimberly needs help." Dulcea said smiling at him

"Thank you." Tommy replied. Her giving his gem powers, even temporary ones, was enough for him to feel better about the situation at hand. If Kim needed him he would be right there standing strong at her side to take on the enemy.

* * *

Kim walked through the forest trying to quickly make her way to Cerlina. She'd already had to stop twice as issues from home clouded her head and interrupted her connection to Cerlina. In order to keep tracking her, she had to clear her mind and refocus. She knew that she was getting closer as she finally started to really feel her presence.

She headed into a more open area and stopped. Cerlina was there, she had no doubt. She heard someone hit the ground several feet behind her and she turned just as she started speaking.

"Aw Kimmie, a reunion. What an unexpected surprise." Cerlina said as she stood there and smiled wickedly

Kim looked at the woman she once trained with. She had changed over the years, her time in the evil realm hardening her features and giving her a sense of dark authority. Her once blonde hair was now jet black and her eyes a deep red. The red eyes were a concern for Kim as she knew where they came from. They were a mark of anyone who had been trained by Zarkan, known through out for his superior skills and his ruthlessness in battle. The evil beings he trained were strong skilled fighters and hard to defeat. Some of them had gone on to conquer planets and galaxies with seemingly no effort, bringing with them destruction and chaos. She feared what Cerlina would do with Zarkan's training and the great power, and she knew she had to stop her now.

She watched as Cerlina put her hands to her hips, one hand on each of the twin sai that were attached to the belt on her black leather pants waiting for battle. Kim glanced from her sai to her pants and the revealing black leather top that matched before she replied. "You should've known I'd be here to greet you. You know I'm not going to let you just walk up to the temple and take it's power."

Cerlina cocked her head and smiled. "No I suppose that would've been too easy." she said pausing for a moment. "Besides I should've known that Dulcea would've called her pet to come out here and do her dirty work for her."

"Dulcea called me because she knows how much I've been dying to kick your ass again." Kim said emphasizing the again. She probably shouldn't have although she wanted to remind her that she was not a force that could easily be disposed of, especially not by Cerlina.

"That was a long time ago." Cerlina said with a smile. "Since then I've been trained in ways you'll never understand, while all you've had was this pathetic deal with Dulcea."

"Pathetic? I don't recall it being pathetic when you were begging Dulcea to let you spend more time with her training." Kim was quick to remind her

"That was before. That was when I thought Dulcea was the great being, the master, the one that held all the answers. It wasn't hard to find out I was mistaken." Cerlina said as she grabbed the sai and removed them from their holders. "Enough talk, I have a power to get to. Why don't we find out who truly is the greatest warrior."

"Sounds like fun." Kim replied as she pulled her hands in front of her. "Ninjetti, crane!" she cried out as her body embraced the full power of the Ninjetti. Cerlina looked on as she became covered in her Ninjetti robes. They were the same as the ones she wore before with the exception of two huge differences. As a master warrior her robes were no longer pink but a deep red. And as a master of the Ninjetti there were designs in gold that weren't there before.

Cerlina looked on as Kim transformed into a Ninjetti. "Nice trick but it won't be enough to stop me."

Kim held her hands up high in the air and her Ninjetti staff fell into them. She had learned to use it's power quite effectively and it would be able to do some serious damage against Cerlina. "I wasn't finished yet." she replied as she took the staff and stood in a defensive stance

"Now you're really ready for me to hand you your defeat." Cerlina said not threatened at all by the staff as she grabbed her sai and twirled them in her hands before running to attack Kim

* * *

It didn't take long for Tommy to resume pacing again. This time he was doing it while clutching his Dino Gem, waiting for the moment Dulcea would say he was needed and he could rush back into action. It felt good to have the ability to run out and help Kim when the time was right.

Dulcea had given up on watching him pace and was now concentrating on other things. She searched for Cerlina's presence. After a few moments she realized she and Kimberly were near one another. She hoped that it would go well for Kimberly but she would know soon enough. Satisfied with that she went on to try and figure out what the disturbance she felt earlier was. She was having a difficult time getting a grasp on it. It was still around and it was still near Phaedos only she couldn't quite pinpoint it.

Suddenly it shifted. Whatever it was it was on the beaches of Phaedos and it was coming in the dozens. There was only one thing it could be and that was not good. "Tommy I need your help." she said as she marched up to him

"What is it? Is it Kim?" he questioned a wave of worry flooding him

"She is fine for the moment. Someone is attacking and I need you to come with me." she told him as she turned and walked off

It took Tommy a moment to register what she was saying to him. As much as he wanted to stay and wait for word from Kim he knew he had to help Dulcea. He followed her down the side of the ruins and through the rocks. For a brief second he felt a wave of deja vu, flashing back to his first trip to the planet.

That didn't last long as the view of the beaches emerged and they saw the surrounding rocks crawling with the enemy. "Are those the Cryobots?" Tommy questioned

"Yes." Dulcea said gripping her staff and getting ready for battle

"Then let's give them a warm welcome." Tommy replied as he turned to Dulcea who nodded at him. "Dino thunder, power up!" Tommy quickly transformed into the black ranger and he and Dulcea ran down as the battle began.


	4. The Battle for Phaedos

**Author's Notes:** This is chapter four, "The Battle For Phaedos". Hope you guys enjoy.

* * *

Tommy's heart was racing as the adrenaline coursed through him while he made contact with the first of many Cryobots. It had been a long time since he'd been an active ranger and despite the circumstances he was enjoying every minute of it. The ranger in him would never die and was ecstatic to have been resurrected. He found himself wishing that he would be able to sustain the power of a morph more than one time and he hoped that the one time would be enough to do what needed to be done to save Phaedos.

The black ranger was ripped out of his thoughts as several of the Cryobots attacked him from behind, pulling him unexpectedly to the ground. It took every ounce of strength within him to wiggle out from underneath them and quickly move out of their way. They had been much more powerful than he had given them credit for and he quickly realized he couldn't treat them as putties or piranhatrons or anything else he'd fought over the years. They were a battle unit not to be taken lightly and he would have to quickly change his strategy.

For a brief second he glanced over at Dulcea and found himself surprised that even the master warrior was having difficulty fighting the Cryobots. They were a tough foe and they were at a refusal to go down. Kim had been right to leave him behind to help Dulcea, although had Dulcea not charged his crystal he wasn't sure how much good he would've been to her.

He started to get swarmed with Cryobots once again, but this time instead of fighting head on he ducked and dodged their attacks, letting them get accidental blows in on each other. In their moment of confusion he launched his own attack, knocking them temporarily down and out. They weren't destroyed when he knocked them down, they were only forced to pause before attacking again.

Tommy quickly realized that this was going to take more than a little hand to hand combat. He needed to get a step ahead of the game and quickly. Without hesitation he called on his Brachio Staff and as it fell into his hands he dove back into the battle.

* * *

Kim braced herself and stood strong as Cerlina raced toward her, leaping in the air with her sai ready to attack. At the last possible second Kim caught her sai in her staff, causing her to stop short of an all out attack. The two women stared each other down for a moment until Kim slung her staff around, causing Cerlina to step back. In the brief moment she was off balance Kim hit her with the glowing orb at the end of her staff, giving her quite a shock as she flew back. 

"Are you ready to give up yet?" Kim asked glaring at her as she slowly worked her way toward her

"Never." Cerlina hissed. It would take much more than that for Cerlina to give into Kim. She took a brief second to collect herself before jumping up and lunging at Kim, who was surprisingly quite close.

Cerlina changed her attack as she was fighting furiously with her sai. Kim kept up with the blows until the other woman surprised her, getting a sai past her staff and hitting Kim with it. Kim grabbed the injury and stumbled backwards as it was Cerlina's turn to gloat. "Now who's going to be giving up Kimmie?" Cerlina stared at her, satisfied that she was going to win. She was going to enjoy this. She planned on torturing her slowly, watching the life force drain out of her as she got her revenge.

Kim watched as Cerlina sauntered her way toward her. She waited until she was close enough and stood, twirling her staff briefly before slamming it on the ground with force. The magic in her staff shook the ground beneath Cerlina's feet, causing it to briefly open. Cerlina lost her balance and fell in the crack.

Picking the staff up, Kim watched the ground close up again relieved that it was all over. Much to her surprise someone attacked her from behind. Rolling to the ground she pushed her enemy off of her and quickly realized it was Cerlina.

"How did you?" she questioned more stunned than anything

"I told you I was powerful." Cerlina replied as she stood and prepared to fight. Her eyes glowed red and without warning, a circle of fire surrounded the two women.

"You think a little bit of fire scares me?" Kim questioned. She took her staff and spun it around in her hands, using it to make a ring of fire that she pushed in Cerlina's direction.

The other woman dodged the flames and laughed. "That's not enough to stop me." She hissed as she attacked Kim.

Both women were fighting against each other, not using any of the power at their disposal as each woman wanted to beat the other in a fair fight. Both felt like they had something to prove, that their methods of training were better and that they were better. Cerlina kicked Kim in the chest and Kim tumbled back, ending a bit too close to the fire for her liking. As Cerlina charged at her Kim ducked out of the way and the other woman stopped short of being flame broiled herself.

Cerlina faced the fire briefly before turning to see Kimberly at the other side of her ring. Her eyes momentarily cast into the sky. The sun was getting ready to set on Phaedos and that wasn't good. Out of every millennium there was one day where the planets aligned perfectly. One day where the powers on Phaedos were weakened, and the great power would be susceptible to someone as evil as herself. Once the sun set the would no longer be in perfect alignment and she would be damned if she would wait another thousand years to try again.

She suspected Dulcea knew very well about the planets and the chances of someone evil attacking that day. She also suspected that Dulcea would think that she would be the one to attack, after all she was the one who swore her revenge on all of it. Which is why it shouldn't have surprised her that Dulcea sensed her presence so quickly, or that she'd had Kimberly arrive so quickly.

No matter what, here Kimberly was now distracting her from the great power. If she didn't get to it soon, it would be nearly impossible to corrupt it for her own good. She had to get there before the sun set and she couldn't waste any more time fighting Kimberly. Once she had the great power running through her veins she could destroy Dulcea's little pet without breaking a sweat.

Cerlina knew what she had to do. She also knew that Kimberly wouldn't allow her to do it. Fortunately in all of her training she learned a neat little power, the power of invisibility. It wasn't much good if you were going to be the strong assertive evil leader, but for sneaking around and surprising the enemy it was perfect. Summoning the power from within, Cerlina vanished from sight and leapt over the fire, running straight for the temple.

Kim stood ready to attack as Cerlina just disappeared. "Damnit." she cursed under her breath. She couldn't afford for her to take off like that. She had no idea how she did it, however she assumed it was a trick Zarkan taught her.

It wouldn't take an idiot to make an assumption about where she was heading. Of course one of the things she learned from Dulcea was that one wrong assumption could destroy the universe. And for that Kim took a deep breath and tried to concentrate on her yet again. It seemed harder this time but she found her and tried to keep her mind clear so could follow her and stop her before anything bad happened.

* * *

Thanks to the use of Tommy's Brachio Staff, Cryobots were disappearing at fast rates. Hand to hand combat combined with the power of his staff was enough for him to help Dulcea take care of these creeps. They were still tough, he'd give them that, but they were able to destroy them in the end. 

After a long, hard fought battle the rocky beaches of Phaedos were finally clear of any sign of the Cryobots. "I'm glad that's over with." Tommy said absentmindedly

"Yes they were tough opponents." Dulcea replied. She was glad that Tommy had been with her as she wasn't certain she would've been able to take them all out on their own. Had they gotten past the ruins they would have most certainly given Kimberly trouble.

"So what do we do now?" Tommy questioned. He refused to power down. He wouldn't risk Kim needing him and him having wasted his one power up. He was going to hang onto this morph until the power ripped itself from his body. The chilling thought of the power slowly leaving him useless brought back painful memories of a time long ago, a time when he never knew how long he'd be able to sustain a morph while his friends needed him.

"We will return to the ruins and wait for news from Kimberly." Dulcea replied as she led the way. Tommy followed her and was surprised when she suddenly stopped. Dulcea gasped as an unsettling feeling washed over her.

"What's wrong?" Tommy asked quickly stepping in front of the master warrior

"Cerlina's reached the power." she said gravely glancing up at the ranger in front of her

"Is Kim ok?" Tommy asked as his concern for her life overwhelmed him

"I do not know." Dulcea replied. It wasn't a good answer to give but it was the only one she had. She had received no communications from Kim to let her know anything, although she couldn't help but be a little worried herself that Cerlina had managed to reach the great power.

"I have to go stop Cerlina, help Kim." Tommy said quickly as he turned to run ahead

"Tommy wait!" Dulcea called out after him. The black ranger briefly stopped and looked back at her. "You mustn't do this. There is no guarantee that your morph will last long enough for you to fight. If you lose your powers before this is over, Cerlina will kill you."

"I'm willing to take that risk." Tommy replied, the determination in his voice indicating that it wasn't open for debate. He took of with a fury toward the ruins in order to make his way toward the temple. He wasn't going to let Cerlina get the power and more importantly he wasn't going to let his fiancé die.


	5. Protecting The Great Power

**Author's Note: **Here's the new chapter a bit earlier than expected :) I hope you guys enjoy it. The next chapter should be out sometime at the end of April. Maybe sooner, but I am going on vacation for a week in April which is why it might take longer to get the chapter out.  
This chapter is "Protecting The Great Power" and it's about Cerlina and Kim's fight in front of the temple. As always reviews are appreciated. 

* * *

Kim's instincts were correct as she ran out into the clearing in front of the temple to find Cerlina already there. She awakened the guardians of the temple and was now fighting the stone creatures. Although years ago it took six rangers to defeat them, Cerlina stood here with enough power to potentially be able to defeat them alone, giving her access to the power hidden within. That was something Kim couldn't, Kim wouldn't let happen. 

She ran at Cerlina, flying past the guardians and straight for the warrior, hitting her from behind with her staff and sending her flying. "You will not touch that power." Kim growled

"Kimmie you're too late, I'm almost there." Cerlina replied gesturing toward the two guardians she'd already made short work of. 

She snarled at the woman from beneath her ninjetti robes. "The way I see it you're not there yet." she pointed out, rolling out of the way of one of the oncoming guardians and standing in front of Cerlina in fighting stance

"That will change quickly." Cerlina said rushing at her. She was hoping that she could distract her easily and continue taking on the warriors as time was not on her side.

As the two women locked in combat once again, a figure emerged from the forest. The black ranger stood there, looking over both women. He had to admit to being more than a little surprised. There Kim stood and she seemed fine, in fact she was more than fine. She was the crane Ninjetti again, only she was red. His Kim was a red.

The powers she had were beyond that of a normal ninjetti's abilities but she was handling them gracefully. He watched in awe as she used all the powers at her disposal to fight fiercely. He couldn't believe it. Here she was, his Kim, as a warrior. He knew she was a good ranger but this... Tommy let his thoughts trail off as he shook his head and tried to ground himself back in reality.

The guardians were trying to attack Kim and Cerlina. They had no allegiances to Kim or Dulcea, only to the power. And if the power was going to stay out of the hands of Cerlina the guardians would have to stay intact. Mind made up, he decided to leave the other woman to Kim for the moment and fight the guardians enough to distract, but not destroy them. Calling for his staff once more, he quickly headed out onto the battlefield.

Cerlina grunted as a black power ranger entered the mix. Although he seemed not to be going after her, but after the guardians. That may prove useful as once they were destroyed she could have the power and there wasn't anything Kim could do about it. And if he stood in her way, well how hard could it be to kill a power ranger. With brute strength Cerlina lunged at Kim trying to end the battle quickly.

Kim hit the ground and rolled away before Cerlina could get near her, barely catching a glimpse of Tommy as she did. He was fighting the guardians for reasons Kim didn't understand. After all if they were destroyed the power would be open to Cerlina. But he would know that, he'd have to remember that. Besides she didn't have time to worry about it as Cerlina lunged at her once more.

The two were evenly matched as they both issued blows against the other and used their powers to try and defeat the other. Kim called for everything she could think of to help launch a huge blow to her enemy. Cerlina flew back and hit the ground, laying still for a moment. That was when Kim saw it. "Tommy watch out!"

Tommy heard her calls and knew what her concerns were. He could feel his powers fading in and out, knew they wouldn't last much longer. Dulcea's gift had all but run its course and he would have to make the most of it before it did. He was standing in front of one of the guardians and he continued to try and issue blows as one minute the power coursed through his veins and the next it didn't.

Suddenly Kim's world started to move in slow motion. A sense of deja vu washed over her as she watched Tommy's powers fade before her eyes in the middle of the battle. She didn't notice as Cerlina stood up and took this as her distraction, going to attack the other guardian. Her focus was only on Tommy as she rushed toward him. Before she could get there his powers faded for the last time, leaving him helpless as the guardian crushed his mid-section with a blow hard enough to send him flying. 

Immediately Kim stopped and switched directions, running to the side of the man she loved most in the world. "Tommy are you ok?" she asked as she lifted his head in her arms

"I'll... I'll be fine." Tommy replied choking on the words as he spoke them. He was in a lot of pain and working hard to try and get his breath back to something normal as the guardian had crushed him. He would be alright, he'd just have to stay out of the battle which is what he didn't want to do. "Go stop Cerlina." he said as he looked into Kim's eyes

Kim quickly went to put her arms around him and pull him up. "Not until we get you to safety." She wasn't thinking logically, she knew that, but he was too important to her to let him die. 

"Kim," Tommy started to argue with her but she hushed him. She pushed a little ways into the forest and found a safe place for Tommy to rest before running back off into battle.

Tommy closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths as she took off. It was hard to watch her leave to rush off into battle without him. Every ounce of him wanted to jump up and join her, to protect her. But he couldn't, his body wouldn't let him and he'd only be a liability to her. With a sigh he resolved himself to waiting, praying that soon she'd be back with good news.

As Tommy rested Kim took one final glance in his direction before shifting her concentration back to Cerlina. To her horror she'd defeated another guardian and was doing a number on the last one. Kim rushed over and tackled her to the ground before jumping up and standing close enough to the guardian to try and protect it from her.

"Just one more to go." Cerlina reminded her as she stood. "And he'll succumb to me quite easily." Of course it would be better if Kim wasn't there as now she had to go back to working around Kim to get to it. 

"You still have to get through me first." Kim reminded her as she ran to attack

Cerlina fought for a second before throwing Kim off of her. Briefly she glanced up at the sky. She had mere minutes before this opportunity would pass and Kim would be able to defeat her. Once the sun set even if she defeated the final guardian the great power would fight her efforts to use it and control it. She had to distract Kim again. Briefly she glanced over to the forest. She had a fondness for that ranger she'd hidden over there. Perhaps she could use that to her advantage. 

Her eyes glowed red as she called to all the power she could muster from within. Suddenly a flame started at her feet and rushed straight in the direction that Kim had left the other ranger. Satisfied she turned back toward the guardian.

"No!" Kim yelled standing up and running at Cerlina. She slammed the other woman out of the way, having only seconds to stop the flame before it reached the forest. Quickly she held up her staff in an attempt to call forth all the power it held, powers she'd never accessed before but knew they were there. Sparks flew from the end of the staff as electricity started to flow from it, creating a force field around them all and temporarily stopping the fire from moving. 

Cerlina would not stand for this at all. She ran toward Kim, taking her sai and slashing them at her. Before she had a chance to attack Kim turned her staff toward Cerlina, hitting her with all the energy flowing through it. Cerlina fell back and hit the electric wall, slipping to the floor unconscious. With her not able to control the fire it put itself out and Kim brought the staff down to her side, cutting off its energy flow and the force field that surrounded them. 

With Cerlina still out on the ground, Kim let out a sigh of relief. She looked around at all the wonders of Phaedos as the last glimmer of sunlight faded and she found herself being engulfed by the twilight. It was a beautiful moment, almost serene if not for the fact that Cerlina was slowly regaining consciousness. 

Kim held her staff cautiously and pointed it toward her as the other woman struggled to pull herself to her feet. Cerlina adjusted her eyes and looked around. She was too late. She balled her fist and turned toward Kim. Her energy was drained and she didn't need to fight now, but she wouldn't forget this. "You'll pay for this Kimmie." she glared at her for a moment thinking about how she'd take away everything near and dear to her, saving her for last. With a huff she teleported herself off, leaving Kim standing by herself on Phaedos.

Once Cerlina was gone Kim powered down and glanced around. The only indication of the battle that just occurred was the one guardian who was now turned toward her. He wouldn't fight her if she backed away from him, and the power would eventually turn him back to stone along with three new guardians who would stand lifeless at the temple until someone else tried to access its power. Satisfied that things were back to normal, she turned and ran toward her fiance. "Tommy?" she called out as she headed into the forest

Upon hearing his name Tommy opened his eyes. "Kim?" he replied as she burst into his view. "Did we win?"

"Yeah." she said softly smiling at him. "We won." 

"Now what?" Tommy asked as he allowed Kim to let him stand

"Let's say goodbye to Dulcea and go home." she replied as she got him to his feet. Putting her arms around him she teleported them both back to the ruins where Dulcea was waiting.

"You did good Kimberly." Dulcea said once they materialized in front of her. She was impressed at how well Kimberly did in battle. She had no doubt that the woman standing in front of her would fulfil her destiny as a guardian of the universe. 

"Thank you." Kim replied. She appreciated hearing from Dulcea about a job well done. Dulcea was her mentor and she looked up to her. 

Dulcea nodded toward her. "Thank you both for helping protect Phaedos and the great power. Without you the universe would be in great danger."

"Always glad to help." Tommy replied giving her a smile

"We need to get back to our home." Kim said as Dulcea nodded in understanding. "Goodbye Dulcea."

"Until next time." Dulcea replied as Kim and Tommy teleported out

* * *

Seconds later they found themselves back in Tommy's command chamber where Kim planned on helping getting him healed then going back to their normal lives. But as usual in the lives of the rangers, things didn't go as planned.

The moment they arrived Tommy's equipment was going crazy. "What's going on?" Kim asked as she helped him to his seat

Tommy scooted up to the computer and scanned around. When he found the disturbance his jaw clinched and he turned back toward Kim. "We have a problem." 

Kim frowned as she didn't like the tone in his voice. "What's the problem?"

"It's Cerlina." Tommy said simply. After their adventure on Phaedos he never wanted to see her again but it was too late for that. Kim looked at him curiously and he continued. "She's on the moon. Setting up in the remnants of the Lunar Palace."

Kim crossed her arms over her chest. This would not be good. 


	6. Activity On The Moon

**Disclaimer:** All of the official Power Rangers characters belong to Disney. The villains are all my creation and belong to me.  
**Author's Notes:** This is chapter 6, "Activity On The Moon". Kim is desperate to stop Cerlina before she has a chance to attack Earth.  
Hope everyone likes it. As always reviews are appreciated.

* * *

Kim shook her head. "I need to go stop her. Before this escalates." That was all Earth needed was for another villain to decide it was their job to conquer or destroy the planet, putting its citizens through numerous monster attacks among the other things that bad guys did. She thought this had been over on Phaedos but she was mistaken. She'd have to act quickly to stop Cerlina before she had a chance to do any damage.

"I'm going too. You'll need my help." Tommy quickly stated as he struggled to stand

"Absolutely not." Kim replied gently pushing him back down into his seat. "You're injured and you don't have any powers. You won't be any good to me like that."

"I'm still a red. You'll need me." he said referencing his tenure as the red Zeo and then the red Turbo ranger. In fact by most he was considered to be the red, the one every red ranger after him strived to be. Kim was a strong warrior and amazing in battle he wouldn't argue that. But she'd still need him there. And as the red, any attack on his home world by a villain he was familiar with was something he planned on being front and center of. "And if she's going to attack my planet I am going to be a part of it." Phaedos was different. But now this was his turf, his battle, and he'd be damned if he was going to sit on the sidelines.

"And Cerlina is my problem. I'm the only one of us with the powers to defeat her and I am not going to let you come with me only for me to have to worry about you getting killed." Kim said crossing her arms and glaring at him. She did not have the time to argue the point she had to stop her quickly. However she wanted Tommy to understand where she was coming from and for that she kept going. "Furthermore it doesn't matter if you were once a red ranger, you aren't any more. And for the record this isn't just your planet it's mine as well and I am going to defend it."

"I'm not a current red but I can pull out my zeonizers, get the zeo crystal. Then I can join you as a red." Tommy argued with her. Of course it was going to be a matter of finding the zeo crystal. He had used the zeo powers a few years ago in a battle with several other reds and afterwards he'd given the crystal to Billy to store. Billy had returned to Earth two years before his mission and had been doing some research of his own in his own command center, working for a technology company that he sold his final ideas to while simultaneously being able to work on more advanced technology for the intergalactic community. Billy had been eager to help Tommy gather all the old reds and recharge all the old morphers.

It was a year ago that Billy had been asked by the Aquitarians to make their home world his primary lab and he'd agreed as he had more access to more advance technology there. He was highly respected by the intergalactic community now and rarely made it back to his command center on Earth between all the work and traveling he did. He was the only one who knew where the Zeo Crystal was and it would probably take some time for him to get to Earth and find it. However if he could get Kim to wait they could both go up there and have a better chance of taking Cerlina out.

Kim frowned. Even if she didn't feel as though Cerlina was her problem and not Tommy's, finding the Zeo Crystal would take time and that was something she didn't have. She walked over to Tommy and kissed him softly on the lips. "Thank you for helping me on Phaedos. But you don't have immediate access to powers and this is my fight, my cause." she said pausing carefully to think about how she wanted to phrase her next statement. "Besides I very well may need you here. You have your own command center, you have vast amounts of ranger knowledge. You can keep an eye on the fight. If I loose we'll need to move quickly. If... if I don't make it back, you know Cerlina. You know what the fight's about. You'll be able to get rangers to fight against her."

Tommy opened his mouth to protest. He didn't like what she was saying and he certainly didn't approve of the idea of her going alone. Before he could get any words out a soft purple light engulfed Kim and she disappeared.

* * *

Cerlina sat on the moon watching as her Cryobots did most of the work. The Lunar Palace had been in its heyday a major spot for two of the galaxy's most evil creatures. Lord Zedd and Rita Repulsa had been two of the very small pool of evil doers to not be completely destroyed by the rangers on their original path to conquer Earth. The only thing that put a kink in their plans was the arrival of the Machine Empire and King Mondo's destruction of the palace. The ruins that Mondo left had sat untouched for the last ten Earth years.

Cerlina knew that the Lunar Palace held lots of not so fond memories for Kim which is why she thought it to be the perfect place to set up her base of operations. Her Cryobots were starting to clear out and rebuild the damage that had been done and she was looking forward to seeing the finished product. From that palace she would be able to plot against anything and everything Kim held dear, starting with those closest to her and finishing with the whole damn planet, Kim included. She would torture her and make her pay for everything she'd ever done to her.

"Cerlina?" a voice spoke

She turned to see Malizor standing behind her. He was quite the frightening looking creature with cracked red leather skin and cold black eyes, horns poking out of the top of his seven foot muscular frame. He had once worked for Zarkan, but he had seen her training with him and decided that she'd be a worthy leader to follow. As Zarkan didn't need him and he thought of Cerlina like a daughter, he allowed Malizor to leave and go assist her.

"What is it?" she questioned one of the creatures she trusted most in the universe

"We have found the old monster making machine. It is mostly intact. We can make the alterations and get it up and running by your specifications." Malizor informed her

"Excellent." she said. Monsters certainly tended to get things accomplished when it came to terrorizing and killing people

She saw two of the Cryobots rush in and Malizor turn toward them, curious as to their bizarre behavior. He spoke to them and a few minutes later he turned back to Cerlina. "It appears as though we have a visitor."

"Oh?" she questioned raising an eyebrow. "Is it Kimmie?" she asked excitedly. She hadn't expected her this early but she'd love to take the beginnings of her army out there and show her a thing or two. She still wasn't at full strength from their earlier battle but Malizor and the Cryobots would give her quite the fight.

"It is." he replied

"Pull the forces off of the palace and gather them together. We're all going to greet her." Cerlina said as her red eyes glowed and she laughed evilly

* * *

Kim stood on the surface of the moon about a hundred feet from the entrance to the palace, one of the few aspects of it that was still fully intact. She had already morphed into her Ninjetti form, staff in hand, trying to figure out what the best move was. She wasn't sure if it was the smartest idea to storm the palace and confront her, and she assumed that it wouldn't be long before Cerlina realized she was there and came out to greet her. This was in no way meant to be a surprise attack, Cerlina would be expecting her, and her rushing in to an unknown situation probably wouldn't help anything.

Finally she decided to inch toward the castle, hoping to get an idea of what was going on behind what was left of its walls. As she did a figure caught her eye as it moved around the corner. Kim took a few steps back as Cerlina came into complete view. Much to Kim's dismay she was joined by Malizor, a being she'd seen before but had been fortunate enough not to battle, and an army of Cryobots.

Cerlina brought her army to a stop once she felt she was close enough to Kim. "Kimmie how good to see you. Have you come for the house warming?" she questioned gesturing to the palace behind her

Kim snarled from beneath her robes. "I came to tell you that you are going to have to move in somewhere else. This is too close to my territory."

"Aw but that was all the fun in it. I wanted to live close by you so I could be an influence in your life every day." Cerlina replied ripping her sai off her sides. She wasn't planning on running right into battle but it was always fun twirling them around in an attempt at intimidation. "And as far as the palace is concerned, well you're going to have to fight me over it."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Kim replied as with a wave of Cerlina's hand her Cryobots descended onto her

Kim started furiously fending them off with her staff, trying hard to use it's powers with her fighting skills to defend herself. However the magic of the staff worked best if she had room to use it, and with dozens of Cryobots surrounding her she found herself with not much to do but zap them with her orb. The problem was as she hit one another was ready to take its place in battle and it got to the point where Kim abandoned using the magic of the staff completely, deciding to use it purely as a weapon in hand to hand combat.

For a while Kim was under the impression that the fight wasn't going as bad as she was afraid it would. She was a skilled warrior and that showed during battle, even though there were dozens of the strong Cryobot fighters. She could feel the presence of a much more powerful being approach behind her and she immediately took the staff and swung it at him.

Malizor took the blow of the staff and hardly budged, ripping it from her hands and throwing it aside before grabbing the Ninjetti by the throat and hoisting her up in the air. "I heard you were a grand warrior. I'm disappointed we didn't get the chance to fight, it would have been amusing." As he finished speaking he grabbed the rather large sword from the holder on his back and held it up.

"Trust me when we fight I won't disappoint." she spat out while trying to take deep breaths. His grip was tightening and her staff was out of reach. She had to figure out how to free herself before her life was cut short. Reaching up with her hands she grabbed onto his arm. She'd only have one shot and she hoped it would work. She summoned all of her Ninjetti powers into a kick. It wouldn't be as effective this close but it would have to do. She used his arm to leverage herself as she kicked him.

Surprised by the attack Malizor released her. Kim rolled over to her staff and picked it up. She was losing and there was only one thing she could do. As much as she hated to retreat she was going to get herself killed if she stayed there and fought that battle with those odds. Quickly she teleported herself home so she could regroup.

"How disappointing." Cerlina said as she walked up to Malizor. "I was excited to see her in little Kimmie pieces. Oh well." she said as she shrugged. "At least now she'll be around to watch everyone she knows die."

With that Cerlina took off and headed back to the palace, Malizor and her Cryobots in tow.

* * *

Kim arrived back in Tommy's command center. "Dammit." she swore as she powered down out of her Ninjetti robes. She was so anxious to get to Cerlina she hadn't thought it through. She should've been expecting the Cryobots, she should have been expecting that she would've had Malizor's help. She knew that creature had been spotted at Cerlina's side in various parts of the galaxy. And yet she had only mentally prepared herself for Cerlina.

"Are you ok?" Tommy asked turning toward her. He'd been more than just a little concerned about her while she was gone.

"Yeah." she grumbled. Her pride was hurt more than anything. "She's amassing an army up there. She's got more Cryobots than one person can handle, not to mention her powers, and Malizor who's actually as tough as he looks." she paused momentarily. "Dammit." she swore one more time, not paying Tommy a bit of attention as he repeated the red demon's name

Tommy waited a second before conceding to the fact that she'd either not heard him or was choosing not to answer. "So what do we do now?"

"Now we need some of what you have here." she said looking at him and gesturing around toward his command center. She was in need of his knowledge and his resources. "We're going to need to organize. It's going to take a team with morphing powers to defeat them. Call whoever you need to. Get as many former rangers together as you can and quickly. We're going to have to get together a team with powers before she's ready to attack Earth."


	7. The Rebirth Of The Rangers

**Author's Notes:** This is chapter seven, "The Rebirth Of The Rangers". It's about former rangers volunteering to help Kim in her quest to defeat Cerlina.  
Much thanks to KSuzie for all the idea's she's given me for this chapter. Also there's a reference to Marie, who is a character she created in her Coins Series.

* * *

Kim anxiously paced the floor of Tommy's Reefside home. It had been a few hours since her battle with Cerlina. She was surprised that she was holding off on the attack, but then again she did look like she was in the building stages. And Kim had teleported out with her tail between her legs. Cerlina probably figured that when she was ready she could come down and crush her hard and fast.

Who knew when that would be, which was the cause for all the pacing. They were expecting former rangers from several teams to arrive shortly. Her goal was to debrief them quickly and get volunteers, then they could figure out what their power source was going to be and hopefully everyone would have a morpher before Cerlina made her way to Earth.

Kim sighed. This whole thing was already giving her a headache. Tommy had already decided that he was going to be on this new team and that he, in fact, would volunteer to take the red morpher and lead it. To spare an argument Kim agreed with him, she had too much going on to fight at the moment. But truthfully she should be the teams leader. She was the one with all the knowledge on Cerlina and her team, and she was the one who was the cause for this mess to begin with. Not to mention that despite Tommy's numerous missions and teams she had become more experienced than he was. But if given the choice she would let Tommy have the red morpher. Nowhere in the ranger code did it say that a pink ranger couldn't lead, and that was exactly what she intended on doing.

In the middle of her pacing there was a knock at the door. Kim rushed to answer it to find Billy standing on Tommy's doorstep. "Billy!" she exclaimed throwing her arms around the original blue ranger. "It's so good to see you."

"It's good to see you too." he replied as he returned the hug and walked into the house. He had gotten Tommy's message a few hours ago and had taken a prototype ship to make it back across the galaxy in time. The ship was either going to make it that fast or kill him, but since he'd done the adjustments himself he felt confident enough in the flight.

"I'm glad you could make it. I wasn't sure with everything you had going on intergalactically." Kim said as she finally stopped pacing and walked over to the couch with Billy, both original rangers taking a seat

"When Tommy called I came as fast as I could." Billy said as he flashed her a smile. "I have a command center, one that I've been updating throughout the years. It's a bit more advanced than what Tommy's got and there are more areas to create and store weapons and zords, plus there's room to expand it for ranger needs such as extra labs and infirmaries."

"That would be great if you could give us access to it." Kim said. At least one thing was falling into place and that made her feel a little bit better, but not much.

"I could do more than give you access if you'd like." Billy spoke and Kim raised an eyebrow up at him curiously. "I think it's time for me to return to Earth to help. You'll need someone in the command center with the knowledge to build and operate everything. I have already taken a leave from the intergalactic scientific community. My planet is in danger and that's more important."

Kim embraced Billy one more time, surprising the former ranger. "I was hoping we'd have someone to help us run things. I don't know of anyone better than you."

"Thank you." Billy said giving her a smile. "And in the spirit of helping, I believe I have a good power source in mind."

"Really?" Kim questioned her eyes lighting up. Things were sounding better by the minute. "What is it?"

"The powers are based on the Sonic Crystal. You'd be the Sonic Force team." Billy explained. The Sonic Crystal was something he found after spending years sifting through Zordon's old records in the remains of the Power Chamber. He was going through the records because he had been curious in his youth as to why Alpha was always unhappy with Zordon's original recruitment of teenagers and the use of their original coins and zords, powers that were extremely old and less advanced than what the other rangers in the galaxy were using. Zordon had been a minimalist, insisting that not much force would be needed to battle against Rita.

In Billy's search he finally found out why Alpha had been unhappy. Zordon had always had the Sonic Crystal waiting to be activated. It was slightly more powerful than the Zeo Crystal but the problem with it was that it was hard to obtain and difficult to control, and would be a power source that would require older, more experienced rangers to use it. So instead of using older rangers and doing away with Rita quickly, Zordon went with the younger team and the power coins. Which bodes well for them now as the Sonic Crystal is out there for them to use.

"It's something Zordon kept records of only never used." Billy continued

Kim nodded as she thought about it. "Is it a five ranger team?"

"Actually there are six pieces of the crystal." Billy replied. It was certainly odd as most ranger teams operated on a base of five or three. From what he could tell having a sixth ranger was intended to exponentially increase the teams power.

"And the ranger colors?" Kim asked. Not that she cared but it would be nice to know.

"That I'm not quite sure about. There are indications of colors but nothing solid. From what I've read, once you form a team you'll have to go after the crystal. Once it's found the individual Sonic shards will conform to and bind with the rangers that sought it out, giving them their ranger colors." Billy explained

"Really?" Kim questioned. It was strange that not much was known about this power. She couldn't help but wonder what exactly it could do and why Zordon kept it hidden. "So we have to go after it?"

"Yes. It will be difficult but all indications point to it being most rewarding." Billy assured her

"Great. So I'll let Tommy know and as soon as we get a team we'll head out." Kim said. Her mind was already starting to whirl with the new information. They would have to get the crystal, get back, and pray that Cerlina hadn't already begun her attack.

"Where is Tommy? I'd like to say hello." Billy said. He'd found it odd that his friend hadn't been there to greet him, especially considering that this was his house.

"In his command center looking at some things." Kim replied gesturing to the hidden door in the house. "I'll go let him know you're here and we can go over everything with him."

"Actually do you mind if I accompany you down to see him? I'd like to get a look at Tommy's rebuilt command center." Billy said. He'd seen it once before the Dino Thunder team was active and he was impressed. He was curious to know what Tommy had done with it since it was destroyed.

Kim stood up and shrugged. "Sure let's go down there." She waited for Billy to stand before leading the way. Kim figured they could stay down there and discuss things until the others arrived. Hanging around the command center beat pacing around the house anyway.

* * *

An hour had passed since Billy arrived, most of which was spent filling Tommy in and discussing the details of their upcoming adventure. Kim was pleased that the others had finally gotten to the house. Now she found herself sitting in Tommy's command center with dozens of rangers. Some she knew or had worked with, while some she'd never seen before. It was nice to see some old friends even if the circumstances weren't favorable.

Tommy put his fingers to his mouth and let out a piercing whistle. "Thank you for arriving so quickly." he greeted once they all calmed down. He had most of the former rangers sitting before him, assembled from all over the country. They had come together quickly and he couldn't help but be proud to see all those rangers together ready for action. "As most of you are aware we have a new situation that requires our immediate attention. There is a villain on the moon rebuilding Lord Zedd and Rita's Lunar Palace. One that is powerful enough and angry enough to destroy the entire planet once she feels as though she's ready."

"The villain's name is Cerlina." Kim jumped in. She felt as though she was most qualified to brief the others on this part. "She was trained by Zarkan." she paused briefly as she noticed a few looks of recognition. "For those of you who know who Zarkan is, you know what that means. For those who don't, let's just say that it makes Cerlina a difficult warrior, and one not to take lightly. She is accompanied by Malizor, her right hand demon and a being who on looks alone could send even rangers running. Cerlina also has an army of Cryobots. They're easily made and difficult to destroy, existing for one reason only and that's to do her bidding. Add to that the fact that we don't know what she's pulled out of the Lunar Palace and we have a very tense situation on our hands."

"So what do you want us to do?" Zack questioned. He was curious as to what this was leading too. There were enough rangers here to stand up and protect Earth, but he seriously doubted that there were the powers to cover them.

"We're looking for help. Billy has graciously offered his services," Kim paused and gestured toward him, "and has come up with a solution to part of our problem. We're looking to form the Sonic Force Rangers, powered by the Sonic Crystal."

"Sonic Crystal?" Zhane questioned said as he stood up in the back. The Sonic Crystal had been a myth on KO-35. It was said to bring great power to those rangers who controlled it, but it was also said by the senior members of the colony to be a myth. Assuming it was real the last time any of the pieces were seen was millennia ago and noone would even begin to know how to find it. "How do we know it even exists?"

"The Sonic Crystal is real. Zordon knew of it's existence but kept it hidden, it's location cryptic in order to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. He didn't use it because he simply didn't find it necessary. But with the battle that's looming I believe it will be our best choice." Billy jumped in, giving away a few of the tidbits of information he had

Kim watched as some of the older rangers nodded at the mention of Zordon. He had been a mentor to the first sets of rangers, one who was highly respected. If he left word that this power was out there she knew they'd go after it. "The crystal contains six pieces, meaning six rangers." Kim informed the group. "Tommy and I are going to be on the team but we'll need four more volunteers."

"I'm in." Zhane said without thinking about it. He had spent a lot of time running around the galaxy helping out where he could and he had to admit he missed the everyday action that being a ranger brought. Not to mention the fact that every child growing up on KO-35 had heard of the Sonic Crystal, and there wasn't one of them that wouldn't kill for the opportunity to find it and be a Sonic Force Ranger. He was proud to get that chance.

Karone looked up at her boyfriend. At least he was her boyfriend at the moment. They'd had their ups and downs ever since she turned good. She'd been a replacement ranger a few times and usually with her departures that was about when they'd take a break. Now he was the one agreeing to be a ranger again. And quite frankly it sounded like a good idea to her. She still had years of evil deeds to make up for that her short tenure as a ranger couldn't cover. This kind of battle was one she wanted to be a part of, do some good in. "Me too." she said standing beside her boyfriend

As she stood she finally got a good look at Kim. The woman standing in front of her looked worn out, and she could understand why. Despite the fact that she was no longer the princess of evil she still had contacts throughout the galaxy and she called on them often to get tidbits that would help her in her fight against evil. Zarkan's taking a new student was big news considering it had been a long time since he'd trained his last one. He had elected to go about his own ruthless business until he found someone he thought to be worthy of his training. Apparently he had been interested in Cerlina, who was a former student of Dulcea's. Rumor had it that Zordon's original pink ranger was the one who sent Cerlina running into Zarkan's open arms. And now that pink ranger was desperately trying to put a team together before it was too late.

Kim nodded in Karone and Zhane's direction, grateful for her first two volunteers. She knew them both a little bit as she'd met them both briefly in other parts of the galaxy. Zhane would be a good addition to the team as he'd been the Silver Astro Ranger during one of the greatest ranger battles against Dark Specter. Karone was still the former princess of evil, and despite all the good she's done Kim still had her reservations. Especially since rumor had it that she still associated with some of Astronema's contacts. But she had also been a replacement ranger, and from what she heard she was excellent in battle. And perhaps having someone who played on both sides wouldn't be such a bad thing against Cerlina. Although Tommy had once been evil as well, he hadn't had near the experiences that Karone did.

Kim was about to ask for more volunteers but she quickly realized she didn't have to. "Do you think you can do this without me?" Jason joked as he stood. He'd kept up with the rangers and their activities over the years and had been aching to get his hands on another morpher, especially after his brief encounter with the power when he helped Tommy on his red ranger mission.

Tommy let out a chuckle. "I wouldn't dream of it." It would be nice to be side by side with Jason on the battlefield once more. They had accomplished a lot together as rangers and he couldn't think of anyone else he'd rather have fighting with him.

As silence fell over the former rangers Tommy and Kim found themselves looking for one last person to join the team. Just when they were wondering if it was a lost cause, the final member of the team stood to offer his services.

"Count me in." Rocky said as he stood and looked at the five people he would be serving with. He hadn't been a ranger since he hurt his back, and he was glad to give up his morpher back then. But now the time seemed right to become involved with the rangers.

Truthfully it would be just what he needed. He was aching for the chance to start over. He had been unsatisfied with his life for the last few years and now that everything was falling apart he felt like the rangers would be the first step toward making himself happy again. He didn't know how it had gotten so bad. He thought he was doing the right thing. He graduated from college and started his own karate school, eventually branching it out into a small California franchise. He helped his mother and siblings out as much as he could. They were even the ones who got him dating Marie, an old family friend who was in college when they first started seeing each other. Two years ago he and Marie had gotten married.

But he had never been truly happy with her. Perhaps that was the reason why they argued constantly as of late. He couldn't explain it, she was sweet and good to him and any man would be lucky to have her. But he just wasn't happy. He knew that was the reason why she'd served him with the divorce papers. Not that he didn't agree it was overdue, but she wanted to take everything from him including his schools. The day they'd had the party at the Mercer house was the first day he and his lawyer had sat down with Marie and her lawyer and he'd been devastated. Then he went to the party and it was the first time he'd been happy in weeks.

Now here he stood volunteering to be a ranger again and he could honestly say he was happy once more. The lawyers were still arguing over who was going to get what, but he found himself more than ready to just sign the papers and start over. Hopefully this would be the beginning of a more pleasant time in his life.

"Great. Now that we have a team it's time to get this moving." Kim said, grateful that they had one more step out of the way. Now all they had to do was get the powers and they'd be ready.

"Those of you on the Sonic Force team, Billy is going to take us to his command chamber and we'll get started from there." Tommy cut in, figuring he could take it from there. "Everyone else, thank you very much for coming. If you want to help let us know, I'm sure we can find something for you."

As Tommy dismissed the room everyone started to make their way back out into the main part of the house. Kim crossed her arms as she followed her fiancé up the stairs. She was confidant that the team would function well together. There was going to be one tiny problem that she could see forming. Who was going to be this teams leader?


	8. Sonic Crystal

**Disclaimer:** The known characters from the ranger universe still belong to Disney. Marie was created by KSuzie. All other characters belong to me.  
**Author's Note:** After much work I have finally gotten out chapter 8, titled "Sonic Crystal". It is waaay longer than the rest of the chapters, but I wanted to do the Sonic Crystal quest as one chapter. Enjoy!  
Much thanks to KSuzie. Without her help with some of the ideas and keeping me sane on this one you may not have seen it until Christmas lol.

* * *

Billy arrived in his command center first then teleported the future Sonic Force team in behind him. Getting them communicators so they could teleport themselves would be high priority, but first he needed to get them started on this quest. He hoped they were all ready because from what he could gather it was going to take its toll on them.

"Is there anything we should know before we go?" Kim questioned. She was more than a little ready to get this started as she was in a rush to get back and deal with Cerlina.

"The pieces of the crystal are stored in the spirit realm." Billy said looking them over

The team watched as Kim made a noise and rolled her eyes heavenward. She knew it would be difficult but already the quest was starting off quite tedious. Leave it to Zordon to hide a crystal in the spirit realm. No wonder it was merely a legend, one most didn't believe in. Noone would be stupid enough to go there to look for it.

"What exactly does that mean?" Tommy questioned, not missing the fact that Kim knew exactly what Billy was referencing and Karone looked as though she had an idea as well.

"It's the passage between here and the other side." Billy said, thinking about how he wanted to explain it

"The other side?" Rocky questioned. There weren't many things that he could figure the other side referenced but he wanted to be sure.

"Death." Karone supplied simply. "It's not exactly a place live beings go. Get yourself lost or wonder too far into the other side and you're never coming back."

"Oh gee guys that's a great place to go for a quest for a power." Jason grumbled. He was all about getting his hands on another morpher. But he wasn't thrilled with the idea of accidentally ending up lost in the spirit realm forever.

"I doubt Zordon would leave hints to a power that bordered on the point of no return. Most likely it's closer to our side." Kim assured him. At least she hoped so. This was one good reason not to send teens after the power. She wasn't sure it was such a good idea to send adults, but they were wiser and knew what they were getting into. Briefly she glanced over at Billy to get his reassurances.

"From what I can tell you should be alright as long as you're careful. Stick together, don't wonder off. That's how you could get into trouble. It's going to be dangerous but I think I can get you in and then the crystal should present itself." Billy explained

"Present itself? That sounds too easy." Kim said. It would be nice if that were the truth but she couldn't imagine that this large dangerous quest that they couldn't go on in their youth would be that simple.

"I'm not sure that it will be easy." Billy quickly corrected her. "The text reads that the crystal will present itself those who are seeking its power if they are deemed worthy."

"So what? We go in there and get tested and it just appears?" Zhane questioned. To him it seemed kind of odd and slightly cryptic.

Kim thought for a moment. "I would imagine that not many mortals appear in the spirit realm. Those who do are tested by the power of the crystal and if you survive the test I assume you're given the power."

"And let me assume that if you fail you're never leaving the spirit realm." Jason supplied

"That would be a safe assumption." Kim said nodding

"It makes sense. Why it was just a legend. If it did exist noone would want to go after it, and since noone found it anyone who went after it didn't make it back to say it existed." Zhane supplied. It would be why the colonists were so adamant that it didn't exist. Even if it was rumored to be in the spirit realm it wasn't worth sending anyone after.

"It's going to be risky I'm sure. But Zordon wouldn't have held onto the knowledge of it's existence if he didn't think that his rangers would be able to on day obtain it." Tommy said looking over at the others

"Tommy's right." Kim chimed in. "We've all had morphers, some of us more than one. I'm sure we're worthy. And unless you plan on wondering off we shouldn't have to worry about ending up crossing the point of no return." She could see the looks on their faces. They were strong, but there was fear there. They wanted to come back to this world. "There are risks and I would understand if you didn't want to go."

The other rangers in the room thought for a moment. "I made this commitment. I'm in." Jason said being the first to speak. He was ready to jump back into the action.

"Me too." Rocky replied. After all, what did he have to lose? There was nothing at home waiting for him if he didn't go, and he was looking forward to being a part of something meaningful again with his old friends.

"I'm in." Karone added. Not much frightened the former princess of evil, certainly not the spirit realm.

Zhane nodded in agreement with his girlfriend, if she was going he would. Kim looked over them all before glancing at Tommy who smiled and nodded as well. "Great. So how do we get to the spirit realm?"

"I can set up a portal for you. It will get you in and hopefully you can find the crystal and it will lead you back." Billy replied. The others nodded and he hurried off to get this quest moving as quickly as possible.

* * *

Thirty minutes later the rangers had one by one jumped through the portal that Billy had set up. There were gasps of surprise as they took in the spirit realm. It was much colder than anyone had been dressed for. They were unable to make out their surroundings or even the ground beneath them as they were surrounded by a dense white fog.

"Remember guys, don't get separated." Kim called to them. It was going to be a lot easier said than done considering she could hardly see the others.

"Where do we go from here?" Karone asked. Although she did not regret coming, she was starting to see where this task was going to be much more difficult than originally thought.

"Maybe we should hang here for a minute? See if the crystal presents itself?" Zhane questioned. He didn't know where the edge of the spirit realm was or how easy it was to cross the point of no return and he had no plans on figuring it out either.

"I don't think it's going to be that easy. If it." Kim stopped abruptly as the ground beneath her began to shift

"What's going on?" Jason asked although he didn't think anyone knew the answer. He didn't like it and he felt as though he'd loose his balance. He made a grunting noise as he thought about how the last thing he wanted to do was fall and get separated from the others.

"I don't know." Kim hollered back in his direction. The ground was moving more rapidly now and the noise it was creating was making it hard for her to hear herself think, much less communicate with the others. "Hopefully it's the crystal." she added more to herself than anyone as she didn't think they could hear her

Without any warning the ground shifted once violently and abruptly, causing holes in the ground to open up beneath the rangers feet. Noone had a chance to respond as they were all sent hurdling toward their destination.

* * *

Jason was the first to come to his senses after the jarring drop from the surface of the spirit realm. He had no idea where he had gone, only knew that he had fallen. He stood up and looked around and was quick to notice two things. The first was that he had been separated from the others. The second was that he was in one of Rita's dark dimensions.

His initial fear was that he had fallen into the spirit realm, that he had been separated from the others and gone too far to ever be allowed back. These dimensions hadn't been used in years, and as far as he knew all access to them was cut off when Rita was purified. But here he was reliving a nightmare as fog started rising from the bottom and an old foe long since gone appeared in front of him.

"Red ranger." Goldar greeted with a snarl looking over his former enemy

"This isn't right." Jason said as instinct took over and he stood, his body jumping into a defensive stance. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to finish what I should have long ago." Goldar replied and with a swift kick he sent Jason flying into the fog

Jason wasn't able to react fast enough and he flew back, landing on his back before quickly rolling over onto his stomach and pulling himself to all fours. Goldar was on top of him in seconds, issuing several shots to his stomach and one to his back before he fell down into the fog.

Quickly Jason scurried around as he heard Goldar's sword clank the ground beside him in an attempt to finish him off quickly. Once he was far enough away he jumped up and immediately went back to fighting stance, this time prepared for anything Goldar would throw at him. "You'll never defeat me."

Goldar let out a laugh. "You're not exactly in warrior shape anymore. You're older and fatter and it will be quite easy for me to kill you."

Jason gave himself a quick glance over. True he was older than before. And yes years of beer had give him a few extra pounds that he didn't have as a ranger. But he was still in good shape, he could still fight. "I'm as much of a warrior as I was ten years ago. If you think you're going to kill me you're about to be highly disappointed."

"Ten years ago?" Goldar repeated. "You weren't much of a warrior then if I remember correctly."

"I was the leader of the power rangers. I kicked your ass every day." Jason said gruffly

"Leader? Perhaps. Until Tommy came along." Goldar pointed out as he stared Jason down, preparing to attack. "Once Tommy became good you were no longer Zordon's favorite. Why do you think he made the white ranger coin? You were pathetic, never meant to be a leader. That's why Tommy took over the team long before you left for the peace conferences."

Childhood insecurities suddenly nipped at Jason. Tommy was like his brother and he loved him but Goldar was right. He knew it in his youth, that once Tommy was given the white ranger powers he was slowly taking over leadership of the team. Jason had been the first red ranger, the teams leader, and he had slowly lost control to Tommy. He knew it in his heart when he left, it was one of the reasons it was so easy for him to leave his team in Tommy's hands. When he had returned for his short tenure as the gold ranger Tommy had already begun to solidify himself as one of the greatest reds ever and Jason was nothing more than a member of the team, a ranger under his command.

The first red ranger on Earth was now nothing more than a small notation in ranger history. He was almost happy to walk away with Emily the last time, and although he thrived on missions like the one he did with Tommy and the other reds he was unsure of what was bringing him back permanently. He was older and out of practice, and was now afraid this would be the end as Goldar lunged at him.

Jason fought off the gold ape as fiercely as he could but the attack was coming and he just couldn't keep up. With one swoop of the sword Jason found his legs flying up off the floor as he landed flat on his back, the wind knocked out of him. Although he couldn't see through the fog he could hear as Goldar tried to take stabs at him.

Closing his eyes for a moment and trying to regain some strength, memories of a similar situation crossed his mind. He had escaped Goldar then, perhaps due to his keen skill and abilities as a red. When he had been young it had been so exciting being a ranger and trying to save the world. He thrived on it, it was why he was so eager to jump back into uniform anytime

he was asked. It was why he volunteered this time.

Suddenly the realization hit him. He would do anything for his planet and that's why he was here. Sure he was older but he knew rangers older than that. And he could work out, get back into peak physical condition. As for his abilities, Zordon had handpicked him as the first leader of the rangers. There was something to be said for that.

Of course if he didn't get out of there and get back to the search for the crystal, he wouldn't be alive to say it. He opened his eyes in time to see Goldar's sword clang down beside him. Sitting up and grabbing the handle of the sword, he kicked his old enemy in the stomach with enough force to send him tumbling backwards. Standing up sword in hand he looked around for the direction Goldar fell in.

He ran toward him, furiously swinging the blade and attacking as his rival stood. This time it was Goldar who was unable to keep up with the attacks. Using focus and determination stronger than anything he'd seen in his youth he kept at Goldar until it was the monkey who was flat on his back. With a swift swing of the sword he plunged it into the cracks of his armor, destroying the enemy of his youth.

Jason stepped backwards, breathing heavily as he did. Before he had a chance to take in what happened, the scenery around him began to vanish. Gone was the fog and the body of the creature he took down, and gone was the imagery on the walls that marked this place one of Rita's. A chill when up Jason's spine as a white icy looking room took over. In the middle of the room a sliver of a crystal appeared hanging in midair.

Looking at it curiously, Jason headed toward it. He couldn't help but wonder if that was it, the piece of the crystal he was sent to search for. Extending his hand forward he plucked it from his position. Immediately he felt it. The power started coursing through his veins as the crystal disappeared. It was a feeling he was always in awe of, one he could never forget. As the feeling died down his morphed form took over and before he had a chance to react he was gone.

* * *

Rocky stood up and found himself in a similar situation to the one his predecessor was just in. He was alone and concerned that he may have gotten himself separated and lost. Looking around he was quick to note that he was in a long lost dimension, this one appearing to have once belonged to Lord Zedd with the Z carved into the sides of the rocky cave wall.

Adrenaline ran through his veins and he stood strong wondering what this particular scenario was going to bring him. He didn't have to wait long as out of the darkness a figure strode forward, one he thought to have been dead long ago.

"They said... they said you were purified." Rocky stumbled on the words, trying to get over the shock and pull himself together for the battle that was inevitably ahead

"There is a weak human form on Earth. But here, here I am still Lord Zedd, ruler of all that is evil." Zedd replied taking his staff and aiming it at the ranger sending a shock through his body

Rocky fell to the ground in a fetal position as the pain washed over him. The pain subsided and he struggled to pull himself to his feet. To his surprise Lord Zedd and come quite close to him while he was on the ground. He looked the demon in the eye and took a deep breath, standing strong. "You won't defeat me." he promised as he moved into a fighting stance

"Funny." Lord Zedd said as he started to circle Rocky. Rocky moved and followed him with his eyes as he walked. "You of all people are concerned with life and death, with saving the world." Zedd zapped him again, harder this time as he fell to the ground.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked through clinched teeth, trying to overcome the pain

"You have nothing. Your wife left you and took everything from you, your family hates you, you have no reason to live let alone protect a planet full of people who have turned their backs on you." Zedd explained himself, unleashing the power of his staff on the curled up ranger at his feet

Rocky cringed as the pain flowed through him. He couldn't help but think that in a way Zedd was right. Marie, his wife, was leaving him and attempting to take everything he ever cared about with her. His mother was threatening to turn her back on him, blaming him for breaking the heart of Marie, a family friend, and causing her to leave him. His siblings were siding with his mother as most of them still relied on her and were quite fond of Marie. And what did that leave him? Lonely with no family, his only friends people he'd hardly had time to speak to over the years.

Unable to move due to the power from Zedd's staff, Rocky couldn't help but think that if this was the end, would it be that bad? What would he have to live for anyway.

* * *

Karone stood and looked around, barely registering the scenery around her. It wasn't true, it couldn't be true. But there was no denying what she saw. It had been years since she'd be there but the feelings came back to her as though it were yesterday. She thought she'd never see it again, that Dark Specter's prized ship was lost forever. Yet here she was, standing on the bridge of the Dark Fortress.

Being on the bridge of a ship she was formally in command of wasn't even the part that got to her the most. It was the Quantron warriors, standing in formation on either side, looking at her as though she was their master, the one giving them orders. But she wasn't, or at least she hadn't been in a long time. Still the imagine sent chills up her spine. She tried to ignore them as she walked up to the front of the bridge, glancing briefly at the image of space before her.

It was then that she caught a reflection of herself in the glass. What she saw caused her to stagger back a few steps. The long purple hair, the tight leather outfit... the Quantrons were looking toward her because she was Astronema, at least in appearance. "What's going on here?" she said aloud as if the Quantrons would actually answer her

She did get an answer but certainly not from any source she would've ever expected. "It should be obvious Astronema."

"I'm Karone now." she snapped as she turned in the direction that the voice came from. Standing before her was Trakeena, the evil doer she'd fought and the one that Leo said he destroyed twice already. "You? That's impossible."

"Anything's possible." Trakeena said as she walked up and stood beside her. "After all you became good."

"I was born good. I was always good. I was turned evil." Karone defended herself as she crossed her arms and glanced over at the woman standing next to her

"You were raised as Astronema. You were raised with all this." she paused gesturing her hand around the ship and toward the Quantrons. "You were raised to be Dark Specters heir. A position that you never got to properly fill."

Karone paused for a moment. She was right, it was what she was raised to be. Dark Specter's right hand. The one with the potential to take over for him, the one who was once the second most feared being in the galaxy. But that person wasn't who she was, not anymore. "Perhaps once. But I'm not evil, not now."

"Evil resonates within you. You can feel its presence, feel it's influence, despite whether or not you acknowledge it you know it's there." Trakeena pointed out smiling sweetly at her

"It's a constant reminder of all the things I've done wrong that I need to make up for." Karone said harshly. She was good, she knew she was. But she also knew that touching powers as strong and as evil as those Astronema wielded left a scar, one that tugged at her constantly and would never go away. The only thing that seemed to mask it was when she fought hard against her former self, when she was a ranger. One day she hoped it would disappear, and that she would be rid of all the painful feelings Astronema brought to her.

"You think you can play power ranger and it will all just go away?" Trakeena questioned with a laugh. "That's not how it works. Galactic ranger today, Sonic Force ranger tomorrow, but still always Astronema. Being a fill in ranger or even a permanent one is a mere band-aid to who you really are."

"That's not true. I'm not Astronema, I'm Karone." she spat trying desperately to draw back the tears that were forming in her eyes. She had given up this life, she was making up for it, she was a different person.

"You may have been born Karone but you were alive when you were Astronema and we both know that." Trakeena pointed out. "She is inside of you waiting at every turn to come out and embrace what's rightfully hers."

Karone's chest moved heavily in and out as she weighed on Trakeena's words. "It's not true." she repeated in a whisper. Although deep down there were times when she still felt it. Astronema's old contact's still whimpered at her feet when she went to them for information in the fight against evil. Those who she fought against were frightened of the woman she once was and they allowed her to have more power over them than any normal ranger had against their enemy. Although she was Karone, Astronema was not gone merely locked up inside of her. She knew it and others knew it, she just refused to accept it.

"Oh it is true." Trakeena replied. "There is a universe out there with only petty villains roaming around causing trouble. It is open for the taking, it is desperate for a new Queen of Evil." she paused as she reached behind her back and took a hold of something. "Astronema is your destiny. It's up to you to embrace it."

Karone looked over to see Astronema's staff in Trakeena's hands. She didn't know why but she felt compelled to reach out and take it. As she did the woman who she once was rushed over her. She could feel the power, the authority as she watched the Quantrons solute her. She was their leader, she was an evil mastermind. Trakeena was right, the universe was hers for the taking.

It would be so simple. There were plenty of beings around who still feared her, enough to start her own alliance of evil that served her and only her. Those who refused to fall in line she would have killed. Those who did join her she would send to conquer parts of the galaxy in her name. She would be able to be a ruler, she'd finally be able to take the position she'd spent most of her life being groomed for.

She walked over to the center of the room and gave the cat like smile that she'd used all those years as Astronema. "We'll have to gather new minions for my army."

"That's the spirit." Trakeena said as she walked over to her. "We'll gather what we can and then we'll start with going after Earth."

"Yes Cerlina should be easy to overtake. Then we'll go after the power rangers." she stopped suddenly as she realized what she was saying. What was she doing? The past and present rangers were her friends, some even family and one of them her lover. She had allowed the evil that was contained in the staff to go straight to her head. But it wasn't who she was, not anymore. She had given up this life for Andros and she would happily do it again.

There would always be a part of Astronema with her but that did not mean she would fall to it. Astronema was dead and would stay that way. She was Karone, future Sonic Force ranger, sister to the red Astro ranger, and most importantly she was good. "I won't do this!" she cried out, turning the power of her staff on Trakeena

Suddenly everything started to disappear. Trakeena, the Quantrons, the Dark Fortress, her staff and even her clothes shifted back to what they should be. As the room changed over and the crystal appeared Karone shook her head. "I beat myself and I get to be a ranger." she mused as she reached out and plucked the crystal out of thin air

The power combined with her and her ranger uniform took over as she disappeared from the small space that only moments ago had made her nightmares come alive.

* * *

Zhane stood up in a place he hadn't been in years. He was standing in the ruins of his family's home on KO-35. How he'd gotten there he didn't know. It had been years since he visited and he was under the impression that they'd cleaned up and were rebuilding the colony but it looked as though that wasn't the case.

A figure walked through the wreckage and smiled at him. "Brings back memories doesn't it?"

"Darkonda?" Zhane questioned in surprise. As far as he knew Darkonda had been destroyed almost simultaneously with Dark Specter. And if that hadn't done him in he'd almost certainly been taken care of by the Zordon wave.

"Surprised to see me?" he asked with a laugh

"What are you doing here?" Zhane looked his enemy over as he stood in a fighting stance

"I came to kill you of course." Darkonda replied as he ran to attack the former silver ranger, who ducked and rolled out of his way

"Then I think you're going to be disappointed." Zhane replied as he eyed him down

"Disappointed? I think not. You are no threat to me or anyone."

Zhane made a face. "I was the silver ranger." he was quick to remind him

"Perhaps." Darkonda replied making a face that suggested he was more than a little unimpressed. "But let's not forget that you were almost killed in battle last time you were here. If it weren't for Andros you'd have been dead."

Darkonda paused as his words sunk in. Zhane was well aware of the fact that he owed his best friend his life. It was an unspoken debt that he would one day repay. He said nothing as Darkonda continued.

"Andros was the real ranger. You were never as good as him, as dedicated as him. You'll never have the ability to be a red, you're just a pretty boy member of the pack. The one with the look and the charm but not the skill." Darkonda continued as he ran to attack him

Several thoughts ran through Zhane's head as Darkonda was coming toward him. He had always been compared to Andros when they were together on KO-35. People loved him because he was cute and funny, but they loved Andros because he exhibited all of the qualities that made a red ranger. Noone ever said he had the ranger qualities, they just thought of him as the charming ranger. He was older now, the charm having worn off. So where did that leave him? He wasn't the adorable one anymore, and he never did have the seriousness and dedication Andros possessed.

Inner fears about his ranger ability, his readiness to face what was to come started to surface as Darkonda reached him with a whirlwind of attacks, the blows knocking him off of his feet. Suddenly he wasn't so sure he could do this anymore.

* * *

It took Tommy mere seconds to realize where he had found himself seated. He also was quick to realize the impossibility of the situation as that place had been destroyed long ago. As he turned to survey the scene he saw something else, something he knew shouldn't be more than a mere memory. "What are you doing here?" he asked the being who was walking over toward him

"This is my lair." Mesogog replied as he stood over the former black ranger. "The question is what are you doing here?"

Tommy looked at him oddly. Although he wouldn't say it aloud he wished he knew the answer to that question. Instead of answering he made eye contact with Mesogog and stared him down.

Mesogog laughed. "I know what you're doing here even if you don't. You thought you could find a piece of the Sonic Crystal. A hard task for anyone, even you. Why waste your time?"

"To save my planet from scum like you." Tommy replied with determination. Something wasn't right here and at the moment he wasn't completely sure what was going on.

"Are you sure that's the reason? Or is it for a certain former ranger? Someone named Kimberly?" Mesogog questioned, waiting to get a reaction out of the former black ranger

"You leave her alone." Tommy said, his features hardening as the tone of his voice suggested that there was an "or else" that didn't have to be said.

"She's not the one whose life you should fear for. She's a strong warrior, meant for a greater purpose than all this. One that you'll have no part of." Mesogog pointed out

"She needs my help." Tommy replied more for his satisfaction than Mesogog's

Mesogog started to circle the chair Tommy was sitting in. "Like she needed you on the moon? Or on Phaedos? Yes you were there but she let you tag along and then you got in the way."

Tommy clinched his teeth as his eyes followed Mesogog. "She took me with her. To help. We need each other to stop Cerlina, to save Earth."

"I find that funny." Mesogog said as he stopped behind Tommy and leaned his head in toward Tommy's ear. "She certainly doesn't need you. And you don't need her, you don't need anybody. You're a loner Tommy, you couldn't keep Kim or Kat before and you certainly you don't deserve Kim now. And one day she will realize that and she will leave you alone just as she should."

Tommy's anger boiled to the surface. It was a fear that had been sitting with him ever since he found out everything about Kim. He loved her more than anything yet she had a whole life planned out for her that he could not be a part of. Unleashing his anger he jumped up and put one foot on the chair and tried to kick Mesogog with the other one. Mesogog ducked out of the way and kicked Tommy's chair, knocking him flat on his back on the floor.

"She has a greater purpose and you can never be a part of her life." Mesogog pointed out as he stood over Tommy

Tommy's heart dropped. Everything he feared about their relationship came rushing forward. In their youth she had left him for another man. There relationship wasn't meant to be then and this was before she had changes to her DNA and went running off for training with Dulcea. They had such a great few months but then to find out all of this about her... part of him feared that she'd go running off and he'd never see her again, leaving him crushed and alone. She certainly didn't need him for battle as she let him tag along and he was afraid she'd decide she didn't need him as her lover either.

"In pain?" Mesogog asked as he looked at him. Tommy's eyes locked with his. It was obvious he was hurting emotionally and the warrior in him had been blocked out, unable to tell him what to do. "Don't worry it will be over soon." he promised as he went to attack

* * *

Kim came to on a cold hard floor. As her eyes fluttered open she pulled herself to a sitting position, surprised by who was kneeling beside her waiting to greet her.

"Kimmie you're alive." Cerlina said as a cold smile spread across her face. "I was afraid your little quest had killed you before I got the chance." As Cerlina finished speaking she went to sit in the main chair of her throne room.

Standing and looking around Kim quickly realized that she was in Cerlina's new base of operations, the one she built over the remains of the Lunar Palace. Cerlina was done much faster than expected. Of course that wasn't her biggest concern. What worried her most was how she got there. Only moments ago she had been in the spirit realm searching for the Sonic Crystal. "You interfered." she said simply looking at Cerlina

"Something like that." Cerlina replied, keeping an eye on Kim as she moved slowly toward her. "I just thought you'd like to know what I've been up to since you were away."

"So you finished your castle in the few hours since I saw you last. It's great, it will be even better once I tear it back down." Kim said glaring at her. She had no idea what this was all about but she had a sinking feeling in her gut that something wasn't right.

"Few hours?" Cerlina repeated raising an eyebrow. "Kimmie dear you have it all wrong. Time in the spirit realm moves much slower than it does out here. You've been gone days."

"That's impossible." Kim said gasping. She couldn't afford to be gone that long. Cerlina could be free to do what she wanted and then... "What have you done?" she whispered as the realization of what was going on hit her

"See for yourself." Cerlina replied, gesturing for Kim to turn around

Kim turned to look through the window of the palace. Where Earth had once stood strong there were now chunks of her home world floating around, some of them flying toward the moon and bouncing off of the protective force field Cerlina had set up. Kim's legs grew weak underneath her and without warning she collapsed to the floor, her hands barely having the strength to hold her up. "No..." she said, her chest heaving and the sorrow of all the lives lost consuming her

"I did what I promised I would. I started with your friends and family. Your mother begged for her life. It was quite pathetic and I couldn't take much of it before I stabbed her through the heart." Cerlina paused and knelt down to Kim's level to insure she was taking in every word she said. "The former rangers, now they were amusing. They thought that being touched by the power was enough to stop me. They sang the same pathetic song while I slaughtered them all."

"Why?" Kim asked, tears falling down her face at the thought of practically everyone and everything she ever loved being lost to her forever

"It's simple Kimmie." Cerlina said as she stood and paced back and forth in front of Kim. "I promised I would kill your friends and family before destroying the miserable little planet you came from. And I always keep my promises. You on the other hand, your promises are worth nothing. You promised you'd stop me. And you failed. You didn't even try to save them. You might as well have killed them yourself."

Kim couldn't help the sobs that were coming. She had gotten everyone killed. All she ever wanted to do was protect them, and even with all the power she had at her disposal when it came down to it she could do nothing. She no longer gave a damn about what she was destined to do, none of it mattered. It cost the lives of the people she cared for and she almost ached to go with them. There was nothing left, she was a failure and she didn't deserve to be here. She couldn't hold herself up anymore as she collapsed to the floor, the tears flowing freely as she rolled over onto her back and stared at the ceiling.

"I did make one more promise Kimmie." Cerlina said as she put one foot on either side of Kim's body and stood over her. "And that was to torture and kill you. As much fun as my time on Earth was I've been looking forward to this most of all."

Kim watched as she drew her sai and twirled them around. The pain that weighed heavily on her heart would only be extinguished by Cerlina finishing the job. What was left for her anyway? Earth was gone, her friends, her family, Tommy...

Reality suddenly hit her like a brick. Tommy. He was in the spirit realm when all this was going on. It was quite possible that he was still there, very much alive, and with the others searching for the crystal. Despite everything that happened on Earth she still had a team of rangers that was out there and needed her help. She failed an entire planet but she still had five friends that she wouldn't fail, she couldn't fail. They would get the crystal and chase Cerlina to the ends of the galaxy if that's what it took.

As the sai came crashing down toward her Kim summoned every bit of strength she had to reach out and grab Cerlina's wrists before the metal could touch her skin. Cerlina was stunned, she hadn't expected Kim to fight back. Quickly Kim twisted her wrists causing her to drop the sai in pain. Once she released her weapons Kim kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying backwards.

Before Cerlina had a chance to recover Kim leaped up and grabbed the sai off the floor, twirling them in her own hands as she charged toward her enemy. Holding her hands up Cerlina made an attempt to stop the oncoming advances. But with Kim holding her weapons she didn't have anything to use against her and the situation was moving much to quickly for her to think of a way to retaliate.

Seconds later Kim cut Cerlina down, her blood spilling on the floor as she stood over her. Something wasn't right. She couldn't be dead. She was too powerful to let Kim take her that easily, wasn't she? Cerlina was powerful, perhaps this was an illusion. The real Cerlina could be standing by waiting to attack. She spun around, checking to see if this being she had killed was nothing more than a distraction from the real thing. As she turned the scene around her began to dissolve, ending with the disappearance of the sai in her hands.

She shook her head as a sliver of the crystal appeared before her. It all made sense now. This was her quest. She had to overcome her fears and defeat Cerlina. If she was able to do that then she would prove herself worthy of a piece of the Sonic Crystal. She understood now why Zordon was quite adamant about not sending them after the crystal as teenagers. She would never have been able to overcome her fears at that age. Zordon himself had referred to teens as "overbearing, overemotional humans". They would have never been able to pull the strength from within to earn a piece of the crystal.

Putting a hand on the sliver she pulled it toward her. She felt the power rush through her veins and watched as her new uniform took her over. She didn't have much chance to marvel at it as the air swirled around her and she was quickly getting transported elsewhere. As things around her cleared she found herself standing in a circle with the other five rangers. "Everyone ok?" she asked

All five heads snapped toward Kim's voice coming from behind the red ranger's uniform. "We're fine." Rocky said from behind the blue helmet, slightly surprised to see his friend in red. Of course he should be glad to be seeing anything. He thought Zedd was going to kill him, and in a moment of weakness he thought that was what he wanted. There was a moment while Zedd was shocking him that he realized although everything had fallen apart he did still have friends and the rangers and he wanted to rebuild his life with them. That gave him the strength to defeat Zedd and earn the crystal.

Jason glanced down at his white uniform once more and made a face. He had never been white before, but it was ok. "We're better than fine. These are amazing." Once the power settled he was quick to realize that the Sonic Crystal was unlike anything he'd ever used before. They were definitely more powerful and he'd have to learn how to control his new ranger powers. It would certainly be more difficult than his previous morphers which was another reason to add to the list Zordon would've had for not sharing these powers before.

"So now what?" Zhane questioned, fresh from defeating Darkonda. His old foe had opened his eyes, made him realize that although he was worthy of being a ranger that didn't mean he didn't have to train hard and work hard. He vowed to be known as more than just the charming one this time around. He had been chosen to be the green ranger and he would live up to those standards, just as he assumed Karone would be an amazing pink. They were going to make a great team and he couldn't wait to get started.

Tommy, finding himself as the black ranger once more, turned toward the team's leader. It was hard to think of her in charge and him standing second next to her. But he could still have great influence as the black ranger. And she knew more about this particular battle than anyone. "Any ideas?" he said giving her a huge smile that she couldn't see. He loved her and he trusted her, and despite the fact that she had something he couldn't comprehend laid out in her future he knew she loved him just as much as he loved her. She had agreed to marry him, and that was enough for him to overcome his emotional pain and stand up to Mesogog.

"Let's form a circle." Kim said as she extended her hands. Tommy was the first to grab on, the others quickly falling into place. She could teleport herself. She had never tried with this many people, but she could feel the crystal's energy flowing through her veins and amplifying her own powers. "It's time to go home."

A purple light from within her surrounded the team and lifted them out of the spirit realm and back toward the command center. They were physically and emotionally exhausted from their quest but they had done it. They had found an ancient, powerful source in the Sonic Crystal, one they could use as the Sonic Force team. It would take some time for them to master their new powers, but they were all older experienced rangers and she knew that if anyone could do it they could. For now it was time to check in with Billy then figure out what they could do, all the while waiting for Cerlina to make her next move.


	9. Surprises

**Disclaimer:** As usual all things Power Rangers belong to Disney. The character Marie was originally created by KSuzie and is being used with her permission. All other characters belong to me.

**Author's Notes:** I hope you guys enjoy chapter nine. As always reviews are appreciated.  
Just to let you all know it may take a while to get chapter ten out. For those of you not following Legacy the reason for the delay is my hectic schedule over the next month or so. Next week I have some minor surgery scheduled on my hand and while it heals I don't know how much writing I'm going to be able to do. Shortly after that I'm going to be out of town for two weeks and there is a possibility that there's going to be something else added to my plate in August/September. (Yeah it's going to be a busy, CRAZY, next month or two). I'm going to start work on the new Legacy chapter this week. Hopefully I can work on it some and then it won't take too long before I can start typing again. Ideally I can squeeze that chapter out before I leave town and will have the next chapter of Return to Action ready to post by the first of October. It's possible that the Legacy chapter won't get posted until the end of September/first of October and then the Return To Action chapter two weeks later. I apologize in advance for what may be a long wait but I promise I will try to speed write the next chapter to make up for it :)

Return To Action  
"Surprises"

Kim awoke on a Saturday morning, the smell of bacon and coffee permeating through the bedroom she shared with Tommy. It indicated that he was downstairs making breakfast, and that was a really nice surprise to wake up to. It had been a long time since Tommy made breakfast, since before the transmission from Phaedos that shook their peaceful existence and stripped any sort of normalcy their relationship had. Kim shook her head, thinking momentarily about how rangering had always been a part of their relationship and how normalcy was in all honesty odder than the chaos.

Of course they had yet to see the chaos that this term as a ranger would bring them. They had been back for a little over two weeks, with September slipping into October with little noise from the moon. As far as Billy could tell Cerlina was up there building her empire and paying Earth little to no attention. It almost didn't make sense; Cerlina was a powerful enough villain on her own, she didn't need to build a castle or a new army. Kim thought she was trying to get under her skin. She was sure that Cerlina thought of herself as the biggest cat in the jungle, playing with her prey and waiting to pounce when she would get the most out of it.

Although they hadn't had to fight any battles, Kim didn't let her team slack on her. She had Billy create simulations, much like the Astro Megaship's simudeck, where they would battle against Cryobots and monsters and anything else she thought they needed to be aware of. She wanted them to be familiar with the Sonic Force powers well before they had to test them in battle. She was glad that they practiced, she could hear the others talk about how it was weird to have powers again. The feeling was one you never forgot however when you don't battle for years then pick up a new morpher there is usually an adjustment period. She was learning to handle the powers with ease thanks to some of her training. Tommy also latched onto the powers quickly and told her later that the Sonic Crystal has powers not too far removed from the Dino Gems and he felt right at home.

Throwing the covers off of herself Kim stretched and tried to push away the thoughts of battle as she crawled out of bed to go down and meet her fiancé. Slowly she worked her way out of the bedroom and into the kitchen, sneaking up on Tommy and stepping on her toes to give him a kiss on the neck. "Good morning."

"Good morning beautiful." He replied as he turned and leaned down for a kiss on the lips. "Why don't you have a seat I'll bring breakfast over."

"Sounds good." Kim said as she headed over to the kitchen table and made herself comfortable. A few seconds later Tommy arrived with a plate of food and a cup of coffee, setting it down in front of her before going off to get his own.

Tommy grinned as he sat down. "So what do you think?"

"About breakfast?" Kim questioned as Tommy nodded in reply. She looked down at the stuffed omelet and the slices of bacon before her. "It certainly smells good."

"It's the Oliver specialty." Tommy replied. "You're guaranteed to love it."

Kim grinned. "We shall see." She said as she cut into the omelet

Tommy watched her take a bite before breaking in to his own breakfast. They sat in silence for a moment before Tommy decided he wanted to get to what was really on his mind. "So I've been thinking. Now that things have calmed down a bit we should start working on things for our wedding." They really hadn't gotten a chance to say two words about it since he proposed, and now was as good a time as any.

Kim looked up at him and thought for a moment. Although she was thrilled to be engaged to him she hadn't given the wedding a second thought since the mess with Cerlina began. But Tommy was absolutely right, they needed to talk about it. "I agree."

"Should we start with a date?" Tommy questioned

Kim had actually given this some thought the day he proposed. It was the only think she thought about in regards to the wedding before they got Dulcea's message. "I was thinking next July. I can get out of work anytime, and I know summer is easiest for you. Plus the kids will be home."

"I can go with that." Tommy replied. The work issue was minor in comparison with the grief the former Dino Thunder rangers would give him if he picked a time to get married when they couldn't be there. "Have you given any thought to who's going to be in the wedding? Or what we want to do?" He hadn't given too much thought to the groomsmen yet. He had ideas though, most of which were former rangers.

"No not really." Kim said. She hadn't even given any thought to the bridal party. She was pretty sure she'd end up asking Aisha and Trini but past that for the moment she had nothing. She didn't have any clue as to what she wanted to do except for one small thought. "I want our main color to be a shade of red."

"Red?" Tommy questioned a little surprised. "Not pink?" She had been the pinkest pink ranger he knew. He was pretty sure the color had heavy influence on her wardrobe well before she ever donned the ranger uniform.

"I haven't been pink in a long time." Kim replied referencing both the ranger color and her wardrobe. "Besides red represents both of us."

"I guess you're right." Tommy replied. He hadn't thought of it that way. It made him think of how proud of her he was. He was the only red whose future wife could sport red as a ranger color. Despite the fact that they could both be in charge she was still red.

"Other than that I don't know." She said with a shrug. "Maybe we should look into a wedding planner or something." Not that she wanted to pay for help, but between work and Cerlina she simply didn't have time to do it herself. She was hoping that she could get her mother or maybe some of the former female rangers involved as she wasn't even sure where to begin.

"Maybe." Tommy agreed. He certainly didn't know what to do and he was lacking a lot of spare time as well. He looked down at his half eaten omelet before looking up and Kim and smiling. "Come on let's finish breakfast. I have a surprise for you."

"Surprise?" Kim questioned. "What kind of surprise?"

Tommy laughed. "Well if I told you it wouldn't be much of a surprise would it?" he said as he grinned mischievously at her. He watched as Kim smiled back at him, then they both worked on finishing breakfast so they could figure out what exactly this surprise was all about.

* * *

Cerlina looked around at the palace that her minions had built. They had followed her specifications to the letter and everything was just the way she wanted it. It was going to be so much fun to capture Kimmie and bring her up here to torture her, all the while allowing her to watch while she systematically ripped her home world to shreds.

As she stood in the throne room and looked around Malizor entered and approached her. "What do you think?"

"It's too perfect." She said with a wicked grin. Now she was ready to go make Kimberly pay. She could have easily done it before, swooped in half assed and destroyed everything. But that wouldn't have been as much fun. She wanted hers to be the most glorious revenge in history. She wanted to use everything in her power to enjoy every moment of what she was about to do. She wanted it to be long and drawn out, torturing Kim mentally before physically giving her a beating.

She turned toward Malizor, her eyes wickedly flashing red. "Is the machine ready?" It was the last part of her plan.

"Follow me." Malizor replied. He had overseen the machine himself and there were things he was eager to show her. He headed out of the throne room with Cerlina hot on his heels. They weaved through a room or two before coming to a stop.

"This is it?" she asked looking the machine over

"It's the one belonging to Rita Repulsa." Malizor assured her. "With our adjustments of course."

Cerlina looked Finster's former monster and putty making machine over. It operated off of the same principals as it did years ago, only this time it was sleeker and stronger, able to create monsters from molds that were much more ferocious than anything Rita ever came up with. "Do we have someone to play with it?" she asked. She didn't want to busy herself or Malizor with the task and the Cryobots didn't have enough of their own intelligence to do it.

"We have sent for someone. A leech that once made monsters for Zarkan." Malizor replied. "Until then," he started to speak as he gestured to a shelf on the wall, "we have recovered some of Finster's old molds"

Cerlina looked at the shelf and took note of what was displayed up there. There was a small army of putties sitting there along with a small collection of monsters. She picked up a skeletal looking monster and smiled. "Perfect. What better way to start my revenge on Kimmie than by giving her a dreadful sense of déjà vu."

Cerlina then handed the sculpture to Malizor who nodded. "Would you like for us to run this through the machine?"

"While you're at it cook up some putties too." Cerlina added as she continued to think about what her first battle plan would be

"The putties weren't that strong to begin with. If Kimberly interferes she will be able to easily defeat them." Malizor pointed out. He hoped she understood they would be a waste of time.

"I'm sure she will." Cerlina agreed with a smile. "I don't need putties to destroy her. I want them to distract her, confuse her. Put yourself and the Cryobots on standby. When she thinks she's winning I want you to attack with everything you have. And once she knows she's been beaten we'll send our little monster friend down to take out our first target while she watches helplessly."

Malizor nodded. It was a decent idea, one that would throw Kimberly for a loop and devastate her depending on what the target was. "What part of her life are we attacking first?"

"A place she holds near and dear to her heart." Cerlina said with a laugh, heading out of the small room and leaving Malizor to work

* * *

Jason found himself lying on a bench in the small gym that was part of his apartment complex. He was out there lifting weights as part of his exercise routine, a routine he followed practically every day since he got his new powers.

He had to admit, it was nice to get back into working out. Not that he'd been a couch potato over the years but it was nothing like the way he trained when he was in high school. Shortly after his misadventure with Kim his life had gotten hectic and he started working out less and less until it became more of a chore than anything. It came down to the point where if he was lucky he'd hit the gym once a week.

Now that he was a ranger again he had made a promise to himself to get back in shape. It wasn't just for his sake it was for that of the team. When the fate of the world rested on their shoulders the last thing they needed was one of them lagging behind. It was obvious that everyone else stayed in mint condition over the years although he wasn't surprised. He and Rocky were the only two that hadn't been involved in the fight against evil in one way or another and Rocky ran karate schools which forced him to work out more than normal. It didn't matter though as he was quickly sculpting himself into a fighter once again.

He was glad that Cerlina had yet to attack as it was giving him some time. Although he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not as most bad guys didn't hesitate to pay Earth a visit and let them know they were there. Kim assured them that she wasn't like most bad guys, and that Cerlina would certainly plan and be precise, having a reason for everything she did. Cerlina was stronger, faster and smarter than anyone he'd faced before and her entire reason for attacking Earth was orchestrated based on her hatred and intense need for revenge against Kim.

That bothered Jason more than he let on for several reasons. The first one was fairly obvious. He'd always thought of Kim as a little sister growing up and he didn't want anything to happen to her. He was glad to be a ranger on her team, to help protect her and everything she cared about. Of course everything she cared about included a lot of things that Jason cared about which was another reason for concern. He didn't want to see Cerlina attacking their friends or their hometown. The most frightening reason was that the villains he'd faced before- Rita, Mondo, Zedd – had only been out to conquer Earth. That was quite a broad goal and they all seem to struggle to figure out how they were going to pin that down to a manageable starting point. They became easy, almost predictable in their actions. Cerlina was quite specific on what her targets were going to be and there was no telling where she was going to hit first or how.

With a sigh Jason increased the weights on the bar and went back to start lifting again. He tried to push everything out of his mind so he could focus on the task at hand. Before he had a chance to get started the new communicator on his wrist went off. Jason sat up and looked around, making sure the usually unoccupied gym was still empty. Satisfied that he was all alone he pulled his communicator up and spoke.

"Go ahead."

Billy's voice came through loud and clear. "You need to morph and get moving."

"Is this another one of Kim's drills?" Jason asked. He had teased Kim about her simulated exercises. She would page them and strange times and tell them they were needed for battle, and when they arrived they fought against simulated foes. He had to admit that it was good practice with their new powers and a good introduction to the enemy, but at the same time Kim was quite the little drill sergeant about it and Jason found it kind of funny.

"Nope this is the real thing. You need to hurry." Billy replied

"On my way." Jason said as he stood. The blinds were drawn in the gym and he heard no one outside the door. Deeming it safe Jason lifted his hands out in front of him.

"Sonic Crystal Activate!" he called the words that would reveal his power morphers. On each wrist appeared a piece of the morpher and he crossed one hand in front of the other over his chest, clinging the morphers together and listening as they locked into place. Once locked a surge of energy from the crystal surrounded him, morphing him into the white ranger as he teleported out.

* * *

Rocky walked out of the office of the law firm he had retained in his divorce settlement. The papers were signed and it was officially done. He was free of Marie. Of course his freedom had come at quite a cost to him and he wasn't sure if it was worth it. But now he could start over, and the shiny new communicator on his wrist was a reminder of his ability to build his life up the way he wanted it.

He wasn't starting completely from scratch although it certainly felt like it. She had been living in the house they bought when they first got married. He didn't mind, he didn't want to live there with those memories in the first place. Although she wouldn't be living in the house much longer as she couldn't afford to pay him for his half and she was going to have to sell and split the profit. Since they separated he was living in an apartment not much bigger than the one he had right after college.

Most of the belongings that were theirs he let her keep, including wedding gifts from his family and things they bought together. It just wasn't worth him arguing over. They tried to make a list of who got what and she had simply wanted everything. He now had very few possessions of his own and would have to save his money to repurchase items he once owned. That was going to be harder than he thought since the worst part of the whole deal was his financial situation.

At one point he owned four karate schools throughout California. All his schools did well and they were able to have a decent living situation because of it. The schools had been his, he owned the license to the franchise, and he built them all from the ground up. He was quite proud of what he accomplished. Marie made the argument that they were as much hers as they were his. She claimed that she was there every step of the way helping him get them off the ground. Although she was there he didn't know how much help she was. He vaguely remembered at one point suggesting a color to paint the offices at one of his newer schools.

But he couldn't prove what she did or didn't do and that was the problem. She pushed to profit share in all of his schools and to be able to continue to have a hand in running them. Rocky had a feeling it had more to do with her not being able to support herself on a kindergarten assistant teacher salary than her actually caring about the schools. The incomes of all the schools were similar and Rocky's lawyer suggested that he retain ownership of two schools and he give her ownership of two schools. He wasn't thrilled with the idea but it would keep them from having to work together on a day to day basis. Although she wanted the two local schools he pushed to keep the Angel Grove and Stone Canyon schools in his possession as he opened both of those up before they got married.

It was decided that the two that were opened up after they got married would go to Marie and he'd keep the other two. It was also decided that any other schools opened as part of that franchise would have to be jointly run and profits equally shared. Rocky wanted to continue to spread his chain but he was going to have to all but start from scratch. He'd have to license a new business, eventually technically closing both schools that were in his possession and opening them back up as the new schools. It was frustrating as he wanted to keep his personal life private. But he would have to let his students know what was going on or else he'd risk losing them. His only comfort was the fact that Marie had no clue how to run a school. Eventually both her schools would close the doors and he could buy the properties and start from scratch.

He was almost to his car when he heard a voice call his name. As he turned he was surprised to see his ex-wife making her way toward him. "What do you want?" he asked harshly. She was the last person he wanted to talk to.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry. For all that happened." Marie said as she got closer

"You're sorry?" Rocky repeated raising his voice. "For what? Taking half my things? Taking my two schools? Or how about taking my family?"

"You seem to have forgotten how you're the one who took everything from me." Marie responded raising her voice in reply. "Like all those years in the prime of my life I wasted on you. I did everything for you and all you did was ignore me and pick fights."

Rocky shook his head. Here they were arguing. Again. "I never ignored you and you were just as good at starting fights as I was." He pointed out

"Well it doesn't matter now anyway." Marie said not being able to reply with any sort of comeback. "It's over now anyway and you… you've just ruined my life. I was the perfect wife. I hope you're happy."

"Maybe you weren't perfect for me. Maybe that's the problem." Rocky snapped. "And my life's not so peachy either." He added for good measure

"Maybe I wasn't perfect for you because you're just an asshole." Marie yelled

Rocky crossed his arms and took a deep breath. He had better things to do and this argument needed to end. "You know Marie you're not the little saint that you make everyone think you are and one day everyone is going to realize that." He knew he crossed the line when he spoke. She had always been good to him while they were married, but he'd seen the way she could be sweet to people's faces while conniving behind their backs. It was much like the way she tried to tear him apart in their divorce.

Marie reached over and slapped him across the face. "You son of a bitch!"

At that moment Rocky's communicator went off and he'd never been so happy for anything in his entire life. "Goodbye Marie." He said calmly, turning to unlock the front door of his car.

As he turned she started whacking him in the back with her purse. "Don't you walk away from me now!"

"We're through. The papers are signed and I don't want to hear from you again." Rocky said as he climbed into the driver's seat and shut the door. As he started the car Marie whacked on the window a few times for emphasis.

He drove away and once he was completely out of sight he stopped at the first secure location he could find. He answered the page and was quickly alerted that their battles were starting for real. Shifting into ranger mode he morphed and teleported to the scene.

* * *

Kim found herself standing at the head of her ranger team facing her second surprise of the day. The first had been Tommy's romantic weekend for two that he had planned. She really liked that surprise. This surprise, well this surprise was far from anything she would be expecting today, tomorrow or this century for that matter. This surprise involved a group of Rita's putties swarming around Angel Grove High School.

She wasn't surprised that Cerlina had picked Angel Grove High as a target. It was there Kim first became a ranger and met her closest friends, including the man she'd agreed to marry. So if she was going to systematically destroy everything Kim, the high school was as good a place as any to start. What she was surprised with was the putties, a group of warriors so inept that even Rita and Zedd quit using them. She had a bad feeling about this. It was too easy and Cerlina knew it.

"Déjà vu." Jason was the first of the group to speak

"Yeah, well, you guys know what to do." Kim said. Half the team had experience with Rita's putties and for the rest, Rocky had fought Zedd's putties and Karone and Zhane certainly have seen worse. "Just keep your eyes peeled."

"Will do." Tommy replied. He wasn't too thrilled with the idea that someone as powerful as Cerlina would send putties after them either. But they were attacking the high school so for now there was only one thing they could do. He joined the other Sonic Force rangers as they ran at the band of putties.

Tommy watched as they all slung the putties around, breaking them into putty pieces as though it was nothing. He didn't know how the others felt, but for him after facing tengas and cogs and tyrannodrones, beating up on the putties was nothing more than a children's game. Pieces were flying everywhere and their numbers were quickly dwindling. It was starting to seem as though the fight would be over soon. Just as they were putting on the final touches and starting to relax, a new breed of warrior joined the battle.

The Sonic Force rangers were suddenly surrounded by Cryobots, who were weaving their way through the remnants of the putties to launch attacks on unsuspecting team members. "Watch out, Cryobots!" Kim yelled hoping her team was prepared

"They're not the only things you have to watch out for." Malizor threatened as he hit Kim from behind. He was prepared to fight hard but he already knew this battle wasn't going to turn out to be the easy victory Cerlina had hoped for. They weren't aware that Kim had recruited a ranger team or that she had gone looking for the Sonic Crystal. He knew that Cerlina was not going to be happy when he returned.

Kim stood and turned. It had been a cheap shot on Malizor's part although she shouldn't expect the demon warrior to play fair. She glared at him and stood strong. This time she had ranger powers and it would be a more even fight than the last. "Don't forget about what you have to watch out for." Kim said calling for the Sonic Sword, her power weapon. With a determined look in her eye she ran forward as Malizor reached for his own weapon. Leaping toward each other their swords clanged together and they landed on the ground, the battle between the two beginning.

As Kim started her fight with Malizor the battle around the rangers was heating up. The team was quickly learning that despite the accuracy of the simulations it was impossible to completely prepare yourself for Cerlina's Cryobots. Although their first battle was easy it had taken some time to throw around the massive number of putties and they simply weren't ready to jump from that battle into one with an enemy much quicker and much tougher.

If the Cryobots weren't enough, Karone quickly found another thing for the team to worry about as a skeleton like monster landed near the school and started shooting beams out of its eyes in an attempt at destruction. "Sonic Sais!" she yelled as the weapons fell into her hand. She ran up to the monster and slashed it from behind.

Surprisingly the monster turned around and even more surprisingly he just let her hit him. Without much force he collapsed into a pile of bones at her feet. "Huh. That was easy." She said as she couldn't help but think it was a little too easy.

Out of the corner of his eye Jason saw Karone and the foe she was trying to fight back. Knocking two Cryobots back and leaping over a third he ran over to the pink ranger. "Careful Karone!" he hollered as for the second time that day he was being overcome by déjà vu. "It's Bones." He said as though it meant something to her

Karone looked at him as he approached her. "Yeah I know he fell into a pile of bones."

"No that's not what I." Jason stopped short as the bones disappeared. "He's going to reform." He said quickly as he looked around for the skeleton of his past. Suddenly beams came shooting at the duo from out of nowhere, sending them flying to the ground and trying to duck for cover.

"Where are they coming from?" Zhane asked running over to see if he could be any assistance

"Over here." A now visible and in one piece Bones called from behind as he shot more lasers out of his eyes. "You can't get rid of me that easily."

"Should we fire on him again?" Karone asked. There were three rangers here this time and maybe that would do the trick.

"No I've fought him before. There's only one way to destroy him." Jason said recalling Billy's stealing his head and Trini's throwing it into lava in order to make his skeleton implode.

"What's that?" Zhane asked

Jason grunted as Bones' head removed itself and started floating around so it could shoot at them better. "We need his head."

Shots were flying out of Bones' eyes when out of nowhere Rocky hit him from behind, causing his head to fall to the ground. "Grab it!" Jason yelled fearing this would be the only opportunity to get a hold of it

Rocky jumped into action and got a hold of the head. "Now what?"

None of the others were completely sure where to take it next but fortunately someone else had an idea. Kim had seen Bones arrive on the battlefield, and had seen Rocky grab his head. She knew she could easily teleport herself with it into a volcano, the only problem would be getting away from Malizor. She gave him one swift kick and ran toward Rocky. "Toss it over here!" she called out as Bones' body was making a play for the head.

"Oh no you don't!" Malizor growled as the blue ranger threw the head in the air. But he didn't get a chance to get close to Kim as the black ranger hit him in the head with his spear and caught him off guard, causing him to fall back and hit the ground. He looked up just in time to see Kim teleport away, and a few seconds later the skeletal body of Bones fell to the ground in a mini explosion.

Things were definitely not going the way Cerlina had hoped for. They were going to have to regroup and rearrange their plans for her to get her revenge. One thing was for certain. There was no need staying here unprepared and dealing with a strong ranger team. "This isn't over by a long shot." Malizor threatened as he stood up and teleported away

* * *

Cerlina stood in her throne room with her arms crossed. What was a fool proof plan had turned out to be a complete and utter failure. Bones' lasers were much stronger than any Rita ever equipped him with. He would have certainly turned the school to rubble. She was disappointed she didn't have the ability to make him grow, he could've just stepped on the school. That was something she was going to have to learn.

The main reason the school still stood was that there was a Power Rangers team to face off against. She couldn't believe that Kimmie had managed to pull a team together, and it was even more of a surprise that she had the Sonic Force team. Everyone good and evil was under the impression that the Sonic Crystal was merely a myth. This created more than one problem for her.

Her revenge was suddenly not going to be as simple to execute. She couldn't go after everything Kim loved as easily if there were six power rangers in her way. She was going to have to rework her strategy. And if she was right from watching this battle there was at least one other Sonic Force ranger on the original team, and who knew who else had experience with Rita. Meaning they would all certainly remember her monsters weaknesses. As powerful as she could make Finster's old molds, she wouldn't be able to rid them of their weaknesses without tinkering with them first. That was something that would have to wait until this monster making creature Malizor knew arrived. Of course if he was as good as she hoped he was she was going to scrap everything Rita had and make some rather vile creatures of her own.

Cerlina sighed. It looked like it was going to be time to jump in and get to work.

* * *

Kim sat out in the grass in the park as Tommy went to work on recreating his romantic surprise. As excited as she was for the romance, she now found herself not in the mood. The battle with Cerlina had shifted her day, but she was trying hard not to let that show to Tommy.

The battle hadn't been what she expected, although she should've known not to expect the ordinary where Cerlina was concerned. She couldn't believe she'd throw putties at them. She suspected it was intended on teasing her somehow, and that there was some devious reason behind it. She was surprised she pulled out the first monster she ever faced as a ranger and sent him to destroy her high school.

She was glad they had a team. If it weren't for the Sonic Force Rangers she knew she wouldn't have won that battle. She might have survived the battle; in fact she was almost certain Cerlina would want to make sure she was around long enough to watch her demolish all the people and the places she cared about. But she was almost certain she wouldn't have been able to fight against Malizor and save the high school.

The most positive thing that came out of the battle was the realization that Cerlina didn't yet have the ability to save a monster and make it grow. Billy was working hard on getting zords together, but what he had were just prototypes. If it came down to it he would've let them give the zords a try but he was still working hard and getting them functional and battle ready and neither of them would've been comfortable throwing them out into battle. She was thankful for Billy and his intergalactic contacts, if it weren't for them they wouldn't have a shot at zords to begin with.

With a sigh Kim turned and smiled at Tommy who was making his way back over toward her. Her battle with Cerlina over Earth had begun. It was Kim's team versus Cerlina's team, and Kim's team had to win. A loss would cost her everything and it was simply unacceptable. She would do everything in her power to keep her friends and family safe and to protect the planet that Zordon had chosen to help so many years ago.


	10. Deja vu

**Disclaimer:** All known Power Ranger characters belong to Disney, Marie belongs to KSuzie, and everyone else belongs to me.  
**Author's Notes:** Thank you to everyone for your patience. It has been a crazy last few months but things for me are finally slowing down. The next chapter shouldn't take nearly as long to get out as this one did. Hope you guys enjoy the chapter. As always reviews are appreciated.

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"Déjà vu"

Cerlina paced the floor of her throne room contemplating her next move. It had been a little over a week since her first monster debacle and after a lot of debating she had declined to continue reviving any of Rita's old creations. She had sent Cryobots down to annoy Kimmie and friends, but past that she wasn't able to do anything.

Of course now matter how much she wanted to annoy Kimmie she was the one who was truly annoyed. She wanted more than anything in this universe to systematically destroy Earth. She had to rethink her entire strategy. Her first goal was simple. Destroy the Sonic Force team. All except for their leader of course. It would be quite brilliant. In one swoop Dulcea's little pet would lose both her team and her friends. She would be devastated and it would be so easy to swoop in and take her.

Achieving that goal was going to be more difficult than originally planned. Hoards of evil doers from across the universe had taken a shot at destroying Earth's rangers. Although some had come close, none had been successful. She was trained by Zarkan himself, making her stronger, faster and smarter than all who had come before her. However she was facing off against the Sonic Force team, based on a set of morphers so powerful they were thought to be only legend. It would take much more than Cryobots or Rita's old monsters to defeat them.

This is where Finkus would come in handy. Her minions had tracked him down. He was once a servant of Zarkan's and had agreed with minimal persuasion to work for her. He had already proven to be quite useful in the mere twenty-four hours he had been with her. He had told her of the types of monsters he could make and even shown her how to make them grow. She liked that, she wanted to squash Kimmie's team like bugs.

"Malizor!" she bellowed, taking a seat in her throne and crossing her arms over her chest.

The red demon rushed into her presence. "Yes Cerlina?"

"Is Finkus ready to make these monsters yet?" she questioned.

"He has been preparing his monster creations for you to choose from." Malizor replied.

Cerlina nodded. "Good. Let's go pay him a visit. See what he has in the vile and despicable category." She said as she stood and sauntered off. Malizor fell in two steps behind her as they made their way to the monster making laboratory. "Finkus."

"Yes your highness?" Finkus greeted, immediately snapping to attention. He was afraid of her, and rightfully so. She was Zarkan's pupil, his only pupil, capable of torturing him in unimaginable ways. It was the only reason he'd agreed to come out of his retirement for her. He hated working for demons, not because they were evil as he was as evil as they came, but because they were demanding and unappreciative and he didn't like being their slave. After the last beast he helped was destroyed he disappeared to the most retched planet he could think of for a century long vacation. That was until her people showed up asking him to work for her. He was prepared to say no until they asked if he really wanted to disappoint a student of Zarkan. The mention of his name was all it took, as years of working for Zarkan taught him that when his name came up you did what you were told for fear of angering him.

"What monsters do you have ready to be made?" she questioned glancing around the room.

"These four right here can be brought to life and sent down to the surface." Finkus said as he gestured toward them.

Cerlina glanced over the few he had ready until she picked her favorite. He was a wolf, with long claws and laser eyes and teeth that would be perfect for tearing the flesh out of one of those rangers. "He'll do. Prepare him."

"Are we attacking the school again?" Malizor questioned. Cerlina had been quite secretive about what her next plan was going to be.

"No, no." Cerlina replied cheerfully as she dismissed the question with a wave of her hand. "We're going after the rangers first. They'll be time for the school once the Sonic Force team is dead."

Malizor nodded. "How shall we get their attention?"

"That's the easy part. When wolfie boy here is ready we'll send him down to the surface, along with an assortment of Cryobots. We'll let them loose in the park. They can destroy things, attack citizens, it should be enough to get those goodie two shoes attention." Cerlina explained her master plan.

"Would you like me to go with them and ensure the destruction of those rangers?" Malizor questioned.

"That won't be necessary." Cerlina said as she shook her head. "I've got a plan that should ensure the destruction of everyone except poor little Kimmie. Then you and I can go back to our original mission." She paused, turning toward Malizor and smiling. "Destroying her."

With that Cerlina turned and headed off toward the throne room, waiting until she got word that the monster was ready.

* * *

Karone sat in the second bedroom of the small condo she and Zhane were living in. The condo technically belonged to Ashley, who had lived here with Andros right after they got married. They recently decided they were ready to start a family and Ashley bought a house in her name as Andros wasn't an American citizen or even one of Earth and technically couldn't buy anything. They initially were going to sell the condo but after a month decided to rent it out instead. There weren't many people looking at purchasing condos at the moment and they decided it was better to rent it out than to pay two mortgages.

The first tenant they had recently moved out which worked out well for Karone and Zhane. Both of them wanted to live on Earth while this conflict with Cerlina was going on. Neither had jobs or Earth credit and they didn't know what they would do. The idea of living in the ship came up while they were talking to Ashley and Andros one night. The former red and yellow rangers said that was nonsense and offered them their condo. They could afford to pay the mortgage on the condo with Ashley's company taking off and said it was the least they could do. After all, Zhane and Karone were there to save the world and their future.

The duo graciously accepted the offer, moving into the condo the next day. Although neither wanted to change much, they did replace the furniture in the second bedroom with equipment from the ship, most of it communications related. They wanted to still be able to keep up with what was going on in the universe and not feel so trapped in the dark ages, as was the way most Earth humans lived in comparison to other races on other planets.

Karone was glad they'd made the changes. It was the only way she was able to make use of the box of things Andros gave her. Years ago, after her brother had left the old colony on KO-35, they'd gone through some of the homes and picked up whatever they could salvage. On his last visit to the new colony, Andros had been given the box of items which once belonged to his family. He went through them and the first chance he'd gotten he gave them to Karone.

The box held memories that she'd thought were lost forever. She was able to watch video of her and her brother playing as children. It was hard to believe that this was who she was as a little girl. Most of those memories had been wiped away from her years as Astronema. Even once evil's hold lost its grip, all she could remember was her parents and her brother and a few vague images of her past.

Her earliest real memories were of Darkonda, and a tear slid down her face as she thought of all she was robbed off. Brushing it away she focused on the old home movies. The little girl on the screen in front of her was almost foreign to her. But yet it was her, and the more she watched the more she felt as though she could remember. Each memory unlocked a little bit more about her younger years on KO-35.

She yearned to go back in time and change things, to grow up with her brother and her parents. But she also knew that what happened was for the best. She owed the ranger she was to Astronema, to Dark Specter. Just about everyone around her owed a debt of gratitude to Astronema. If it weren't for Astronema attacking Earth and kidnapping Zordon, Andros would have never met his wife. The rangers may never have permanently gotten rid of Divatox or Lord Zedd and Rita. And the list goes on.

"Hey." A voice spoke up from behind her.

Karone turned, startled to see Zhane in the doorway. Their relationship was one of the few things that might have come to pass had she grown up on KO-35. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Just a few minutes. Long enough to watch little Karone and little Andros running around." Zhane said as he walked in and stood by her. "Makes me almost miss the old colony."

"Almost." Karone agreed as she nodded. She and Zhane visited the new colony, which was very much like the old. That's when they realized that although they grew up there, they didn't quite fit in there anymore. Both had been exposed to too much else in the galaxy to go back to the relatively simple life their people led. It was why they hadn't visited the colony since.

"Andros called. He wants us to come over for dinner tonight. He says he has some news." Zhane informed her as he kept his eyes glued to the images on the screen.

"News?" Karone repeated, curious as to what it could be. If it was intergalactic she would think she would have heard by now but who knew. "I wonder what it is."

Zhane shrugged. Andros didn't give him any hit in his voice as to what it was regarding. "We'll find out tonight."

"I suppose." Karone said as she thought about it for a moment. "Do you think"

The pink ranger's question was cut off as both of their communicators chirped. "Looks like we'll be finishing this later." Zhane said as he went to answer their communicators. "Go ahead."

"Cerlina has sent a monster and some Cryobots to the park. You need to join the others immediately." Billy informed them.

"On our way." Zhane said as he glanced over at Karone.

"It's about time she sent down another monster." Karone commented as she went to turn off the recordings. She was curious and a bit worried as to why after one attempt at a monster she ditched the idea and only attacked with Cryobots. It didn't make sense and she couldn't figure out what she was up to.

"Let's go get him." Zhane said as Karone went to stand by his side. "Sonic Crystal Activate!" And with that the green and pink rangers were off.

* * *

The last of the rangers teleported onto the battlefield and fell in behind Kim. There to greet them were a small set of Cryobots and a monster who identified himself as the Wolfinator. Jason couldn't help but laugh from behind his helmet. "I can see her naming skills are no better than those of her predecessors."

"How dare you make fun of Wolfinator." He bellowed as he shot lasers out of his eyes and scattered the Sonic Force team.

They stood and Kim was the first of the six to call for her weapons. "Alright guys let's make short work of wolfie here."

The others readily agreed and called for their weapons as well. Kim and Tommy rushed toward the wolf monster while their teammates went to attack the Cryobots. Wolfinator used his claws to quickly stop their weapons and push them backwards. Kim made a frustrated grunt as she leaped into the air and went to attack again.

This time when she locked her weapon with his claws she was prepared and didn't allow him to push her off. Instead he went to shove her back and she slipped her sword underneath him, scoring a direct hit to his stomach. Wolfinator fell back and as soon as he was steady jumped to his feet again, leaping toward Kim. The red ranger was surprised when, instead of attacking, Wolfinator bit her shoulder.

"Hey!" Kim cried going to react before it's too late. "He better not have rabies." She grumbled as she turned to defend herself.

It only took a moment for Kim to realize there was a problem. In her mind she was turning. But her body wasn't responding. She could blink her eyes and move her lips to talk and that was about it. She heard Tommy yell for her to turn around but there was nothing she could do about it. "I've got a bit of a problem." She called back.

Tommy grunted as he rushed to get in between Wolfinator and Kim, putting his staff up in order to protect her. He fought the monster off and managed to push him back. "What have you done to her?"

"Just a little bit of paralysis." Wolfinator replied with a smile.

"Don't let him bite you!" Kim yelled, hoping that she was loud enough that the others heard her warning.

The four remaining rangers turned to see where the warning was coming from. Standing frozen in place was their team's leader. "You ok Kim?" Jason called out.

"Don't worry about me. Take care of them. We'll fix me later." Kim responded.

Karone made a face beneath her helmet at what she felt was already implied. The leader in her was well aware that when a man went down in the middle of a battle you left them until the field was clear. Although she believed in "never leave a man behind", she knew that winning was always the first priority. Especially as a ranger, when losing meant the lives of civilians and the well being of an entire planet and in some cases galaxies.

Zhane glanced over at Karone as the remaining four rangers worked on disassembling the Cryobots. He turned his eyes back to his own battle, noticing briefly that the numbers were dwindling enough that Jason abandoned that battle and went to join Tommy. Ignoring the small explosions that were coming from Wolfinator, Zhane continued on until he, Rocky and Karone were clear of Cryobots.

As soon as the three were finished they raced over toward the other battle, joining Tommy and Jason in standing around Kim, weapons ready. "Let's finish wolf boy, hopefully that will cure Kim." Rocky suggested.

"Billy what do you think?" Tommy asked, bringing his communicator toward his mouth. He had asked the former blue ranger's opinion before continuing. Thanks to whatever spell Wolfinator had inflicted on Kim, Billy was unable to lock onto her signal and teleport her. But he had done some scans from the Command Center.

"From what I can see that is the most feasible option." Billy replied.

"Then it's settled. We'll destroy wolfie here." Jason said, poised and ready to attack.

"Not so fast." Wolfinator replied as he held out a paw. "I have another trick up my sleeve."

The rangers hesitated momentarily. It didn't take long for them to realize what exactly his trick was, as he suddenly grew to city wrecking size. He shot giant laser beams from his eyes that scattered the rangers and caused smoke to rise from the ground. All the rangers, including Kim were able to move out of the way.

Kim wasn't sure how it happened but she had to assume that when he grew whatever spell he held on her wore off. She'd never been grateful for seeing a city wrecking sized monster before. She rejoined the others and before anyone could say anything, the city's monster alarms went off. Everyone was a bit startled at first as most of them hadn't heard those sounds in years. That quickly wore off as Wolfinator tried to step on them.

"Any ideas?" Zhane yelled as he rolled out of the way of one of the giant feet.

Kim ducked out of the way and quickly hid. "Working on it!" she yelled back. She watched as Wolfinator was occupied with her teammates. Satisfied that he wasn't paying her any attention, she used the break to have a conversation with Billy. "Now would be a great time to test those zords you've been working on." She spoke quickly into her communicator.

"Well…" Billy said cautiously, his voice trailing off.

"Billy I'm not sure if you've noticed or not but we don't have much of a choice. We need those zords now." Kim was essentially asking at first, but now it was more of an order.

"They're not tested." Billy quickly pointed out. He was worried that they wouldn't work the way they were designed to. Not only that but he hadn't completely finished them. They'd be functional in battle but he still had additions he wanted to make. However he didn't have much of a choice. His friends needed them. "But give me a minute to get their power supplies ready and you can call for them."

"Got it." Kim replied. She knew he would give in. She knew he was close enough to done with them for them to be ranger fighting machines. She also knew he was still tinkering with them, but as long as they'd fight and form the megazord, she was good. And as far as testing went, nothing was better than on the field of battle.

Kim ran back out toward the others to find them continuing to try their hardest to avoid becoming pancakes under the feat of Wolfinator. She gestured for them to follow her and she teleported behind the Wolfinator. Ignoring his pouting at the rangers apparent disappearance, Kim turned toward her teammates. "Billy has zords ready for us. Are you guys ready to give them a try?"

"Oh yeah." Jason was the first to reply. It had been a long time since he'd been in a zord but he hadn't forgotten the amazing adrenaline rush he got while piloting one.

"Alright let's do this." Kim said, nodding as she glanced around at her teammates. "We need Sonic Zord power now!"

They turned in the general direction of the zord bay and waited what felt like forever until they could see their new zords appearing on the horizon. At first glance they were breathtaking. They were made of a much lighter silvery metal than was unlike anything they'd ever used before and they were thinner and sleeker than their old zords. The zords carried the general shape of a human, with arms and legs and somewhat of a facial structure that had a large slit for eyes which allowed the ranger in control of the zord to look out. The chest, wrists, ankles and the heads of the zord were covered in ranger colored body armor.

As the zords approached each ranger jumped into their own. "Just like riding a bicycle." Rocky commented as they each got a feel for their zord controls.

Wolfinator was quick to respond to the incoming zords and he spun to face them, ready to use all the weapons at his disposal. To his surprise each zord stood with a giant sized version of the rangers individual weapons. They batted him back and although he got a few good swings in, six individual zords was too much to handle.

Kim watched as Wolfinator tumbled all over the battlefield. "Alright guys, let's bring them together, take care of him."

Upon her command each ranger initiated the sequence that would prepare their zords for megazord mode. Kim's zord became the head and shoulders of the megazord, while Jason and Karone made up the legs, Rocky and Zhane the arms, and Tommy the chest. When it was all said and done Kim found herself sitting in the front of the megazord cockpit.

"We got a saber on this thing?" Jason asked as he glanced around the cockpit.

"It came standard." Kim replied as she called for the Sonic Megazord saber. It fell into the hands of their zord and they used it to easily slice Wolfinator in two. The team watched as he fell to the ground and burst into tiny bits before celebrating their first mega monster crushing.

"Time to call it a day?" Tommy asked although it was more of a statement than a question.

"I think we've done all we can do here." Kim replied. They sent commands for the megazord to retreat back to the holding bay before the rangers teleported back so they could get on business as usual.

* * *

Rocky sat in his small office in his Angel Grove school, picking through the pile of work he'd started shortly before the attack and had been digging through in the hours after. Cerlina had picked a poor time to attack. Not that villains ever had good timing, but he had too much work to do and now found himself hopelessly behind.

On top of all his work were several phone calls from Marie, suggesting she wanted to open a new school. Apparently she had picked out the location and was expecting him to do all the work. After all, as she had put it, it would be half his anyway. He was at a refusal to return her calls although she wouldn't leave him alone. She was up to something, he just couldn't figure out what yet.

As far as he was concerned she could open all the schools she wanted to. Legally if they were part of the same chain he would get half the profits regardless of whether or not he helped build them. And he certainly did not want to help her with anything, she was on her own. As far as he was concerned Angel Grove Martial Arts was finished.

It was perhaps for the best as he was expanding further away from Angel Grove and the school needed a new name anyway. He had already sent out letters to his students and their parents, outlining the steps that he was about to follow. Without outlining any details, he told them all that he had split from his silent partner, who had retained interest in two of his schools while he held on to his Angel Grove and Stone Canyon properties. In order to continue business growth on his own, he was forced to start over. Which was why as soon as he could get things officially taken care of, his two Angel Grove Martial Arts locations would close down for a week and reopen as United Martial Arts. Classes would be resuming as usual the following week. To apologize for any inconvenience, the first week of United Martial Arts classes would be offered for free to his current students.

So far, although everyone had been surprised to hear of his silent partner they had been more than understanding. They loved the schools and they loved him and didn't mind being a little patient while he sorted out some personal matters. Plus they were getting a free week out of it, which was something none of them would argue with. Hopefully it wouldn't be long before the transition would be complete, and Rocky could distance himself from Marie in business. Once he closed these two schools he'd give her the Angel Grove Martial Arts name. He wasn't worried, she didn't know business and she certainly didn't know karate and wouldn't be able to do anything with the schools without him.

With a sigh he turned back toward his work as he heard a knock on the door. "Come in." He called, slightly surprised that anyone would need his attention.

The door opened and in its frame stood Jeremy, the master instructor Rocky had hired to oversee his classes while he was busy running his other schools. With a smile Jeremy walked in and threw an overstuffed folder on Rocky's desk.

"What's this?" Rocky questioned gesturing toward the folder.

"Signups for beginners classes." Jeremy replied.

"What?" Rocky questioned surprised by the huge stack before him. "How long have you been holding onto these? We need to call these people and get them in here." He said glancing at the papers and trying to make a rough estimate of how many names were in there. "And it looks like I'll be taking on a few new beginners classes." With everything else going on it would be hard to find time to teach, but he could certainly squeeze in two nights a week to accommodate everyone that wanted to join his classes.

"I haven't been holding on to them. They're from this afternoon." Jeremy assured him.

"What? How?" Rocky was genuinely confused.

"Didn't you hear the monster alarm go off?" Jeremy asked as Rocky nodded. "It's all over the news. Well not the monster, the cameras didn't get out there in time. But everyone is saying Angel Grove is the center of alien aggression again. Now everybody wants to learn self defense."

"Really?" Rocky questioned. He hadn't really thought about that. When Rita and Zedd were in town he had a few students at the Youth Center, but no matter how bad things got he hadn't really seen a rush of people coming to him to learn self defense. It was possible they just weren't coming to him. After all he was only a teenager then. It was also possible that the citizens of Angel Grove know more of what to expect and want to be more prepared.

"Yeah. It's awesome." Jeremy replied with a grin. "Don't get me wrong, I don't like to be under attack any more than the next guy. But the power rangers are here protecting us. And we're going to double our new student base."

"I guess you're right." Rocky replied. The sudden influx of income was exactly what Rocky needed thanks to the divorce. As much as he hated to admit it, he actually owed something to Cerlina. Not that it was going to stop him from kicking her out of his galaxy. He looked at the folder and grabbed half the stack of names. "Let's start calling some of these people, see when they want to come in."

"I'm on it." Jeremy said, grabbing half a stack and taking off to do some work, leaving Rocky alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Tommy and Kim sat in the living room of his Reefside home later that evening. Both had just finished working for the day and both were eager to discuss the afternoon's ranger related events. As they made themselves comfortable on the couch they made eye contact and smiled, with Tommy being the first to speak.

"Looks like we owe Billy one." He said. Thankfully he had been working overtime on the zords and had gotten them in working order in time for them to use them. He swore that there was still a lot of work on them to be done. Tommy couldn't tell what the work was, they served their purpose and the rangers were thankful.

"Again." Kim said with a smile. Billy was already starting to become quite an asset to this team. After all he was the one who directed him to the powers in the first place. "I'm glad we have Billy on our side. We're going to need him since Cerlina can make her own monsters and make them grow."

"It was only a matter of time." Tommy pointed out. It was the same with every villain. Make your own monsters, crush the rangers. Cerlina wasn't expecting an entire team of rangers to deal with and he assumed that was why she was slow on the cycle.

Kim nodded, thinking about the fight. If it weren't for the fact that Cerlina was a much more serious opponent, it would be just like being back in high school. She had a feeling that now Cerlina knew they had zords she would continue to step it up. Hopefully they were prepared to protect the citizens of Angel Grove. At least now the citizen's of Angel Grove would be on the lookout for Cerlina's monsters.

"It was weird hearing the monster alarm again." Kim pointed out.

"I know. At least the government is acknowledging they're under attack again." Tommy replied shaking his head. At first it had been weird. There hadn't been much power ranger coverage in the news about the first monster attack. It was alluded to that there may have been a possible monster sighting at the school, but that it had probably been an isolated incident. The few Cryobot attacks after that had been directly aimed at Kim, and they never stayed around long enough to get noticed by anyone. But a sky scraper sized monster could not be ignored. Now that the monster alarms have been triggered again Tommy was fairly certain that Cerlina wouldn't be able to attack anywhere without the citizen's of Angel Grove being alerted.

Kim shrugged. "You can't blame them for ignoring the first monster. Angel Grove has been peaceful for ten years. They don't want to see their town under attack again." She said, frowning as she thought about it. "I brought this down on them you know. Cerlina is after me, and because of that she's starting with Angel Grove."

"The people there know what to do. It's not like they haven't been attacked before." Tommy pointed out. When the sorrow on Kim's face didn't change he continued. "And although Rita's initial attack was random, every other villain that came after Angel Grove did so because of the power rangers, why should this time be any different?"

"I suppose you're right." She said with a sigh. It was still hard to digest. Her hometown was being attacked specifically because of her, not any team of rangers but one ranger. She felt bad about it, and the feeling increased when she realized she was several hours away in Reefside. She should be there in the center of the action. Despite this being her new home Cerlina showed no interest in it. And she doubted she would, not until Angel Grove was gone first. After all it was where all the other rangers lived, and where her most cherished memories were.

After much thought Kim's mind was made up. "I'm going to take a leave of absence from work. I need to go to Angel Grove. Stay there until we take care of Cerlina. This is my fault, I need to be in the center of the action."

"I agree." Tommy said much to Kim's surprise. She thought for sure she'd have to coax him in to her moving back to Angel Grove. Tommy thought for a split second before he continued. "I'll move with you. I'm a part of the team, I need to be there too."

Kim shook her head. "I appreciate the gesture Tommy but you have a lot going on here. What about your job? And your house, your command center?"

"I can get away." Tommy assured her and continued on when Kim looked more than a little skeptical. "Anton can cover my classes. It certainly won't be the first time he's stepped in for me. I can continue working on research in Angel Grove. As for the house, I'm sure Hayley wouldn't mind keeping an eye on it for a while."

"I don't know Tommy."

"We can get a temporary apartment. I'm sure they have fully furnished business apartments they rent month to month. And think about it this way. You know Cerlina well. You're leading a team of master rangers. How long could it last?" Tommy paused, taking a moment to read her. She was considering the idea but she wasn't fully convinced yet. "Besides you're my fiancé. I go where you no questions asked."

Kim's eyes locked into his as she thought about what she was saying. After a long silence she finally spoke. "Ok." She said nodding her head. "We'll start looking for apartments." They'd look for temporary apartments in Angel Grove the hopefully it would only be a matter of time before Cerlina was destroyed and life could go on as usual. Or as usual as it would ever get for Kimberly.

* * *

Cerlina collapsed in the throne after spending hours storming through her castle on a rampage. How in the world they got zords she didn't know. It should've been so easy. Grow the monster, stomp the rangers, end of story. They had to have someone working for them. She knew they had an advanced Command Center, she'd seen them teleport to it.

They must have someone there. Someone who knew a lot about the power. If she didn't know for a fact that Zordon was dead she'd say the man himself was helping them. Instead there was someone else, someone who knew a great deal about the rangers and their technology. There were few beings across the galaxy who fought on the side of good and were intelligent enough to create zords. She didn't know how many of them would be stupid enough to jump into conflict against her, but she could find out.

The zords aside she still had a serious problem on her hand. Five serious problems to be exact. Kimmie, well she still wasn't worried about her. The red ranger's time would come eventually. There was still the matter of figuring out how to deal with her friends. And by deal with she meant crush, miserably, with poor Kimmie watching helplessly, begging for mercy that Cerlina would not give.

Once again she was finding herself having to change her strategy. There were a lot of things she'd taken for granted, things she'd have to change soon. The Cryobots would have to increase in numbers in the battlefield, as the rangers had handled the dozen or so she'd send down at a time. She and Malizor were the two strongest members of the campaign and they were going to have to become more personally involved on the battlefield. Finkus would be key, he was going to have to work on the efficiency of his monsters. They would have to be stronger, faster, and do the damage she wanted them to inflict.

No matter how they ended up going about it, the fact of the matter was that these rangers would have to be stopped hard and fast. Her path to revenge was coming across more bumps than she'd ever anticipated. She wasn't happy about it, but there was one thing that was certain. Even if it took a lifetime's worth of work she would do what she came to the moon to do. She was going to systematically destroy Dulcea's pet. Kimmie wasn't going to stand a chance.


	11. Changing Times

**Disclaimer: **Ranger characters still belong to Disney, all other characters in this chapter belong to me.  
**Author's Notes: **Much thanks to KSuzie for brainstorming some of the story ideas with me. Enjoy the chapter and as always, reviews are appreciated.

Return To Action  
"Changing Times"

The red Sonic Force ranger found herself being tossed around on the battlefield like a ragdoll. She had no clue what Cerlina was doing in her palace, but it was obvious that she was making her monsters more of a challenge. Add in Malizor's instance on getting a punch in and the Cryobots lurking around to give them a headache and she found herself with one pain of an afternoon battle.

Kim let out a grunt as she slammed her fist to the ground before jumping up and rushing back into the action. In her race to the monster, Malizor stepped into her path and she let all her fury out on him. "You can try whatever you want, but you will not win." Kim said harshly as she attacked.

Malizor immediately went on the defensive, waiting until he got an opportunity before beating her back. "If you haven't noticed, your friends aren't faring so well with our creation. It won't be long now before they're destroyed and Cerlina decimates the rest of your pitiful existence."

Kim ducked and rolled out of the way, pausing briefly to glance at the rest of the battlefield. Malizor was right. Tommy, Karone, Rocky and Zhane were all fighting against the monster and they were all getting thrown in every direction as Jason finished off the rest of the Cryobots. She turned back in time to lock weapons with Malizor before kicking him in the stomach and separating him from her. "Just because he isn't already mush doesn't mean he won't be soon." Kim said, thinking about how she was seriously hoping Billy would have a suggestion to bring this monster down sooner rather than later.

"Still confidant in your team?" Malizor asked, standing tall after being kicked back. "How cute." He finished as he ran after her.

Kim was so wrapped up in locking into battle with Malizor that she didn't even notice when one of the rangers attacked him from behind. He was hit with a powerful blow from the Sonic Staff, and as he turned around to face his attacker Kim took advantage. "I think we're going to take you down first." She said as she sent him flying before going to stand next to Jason. "Nice of you to join me."

"You looked like you could use a hand." Jason replied, smiling at her even though she couldn't see it. He had finished the fight against the Cryobots and noticed that four of his teammates were on the monster. Although they weren't doing stellar, he figured if he could help Kim get rid of Malizor they could hold off the monster then they could all pound him together.

As Malizor stood, Jason and Kim moved immediately to battle stances. "Let's show him why he shouldn't mess with the rangers." Kim said, twirling her sword in her hands as Jason nodded in agreement.

The duo ran toward the demon, leaping in the air to attack simultaneously. He blocked their first attack and pushed them each to separate sides. Not wasting any time the two rangers attacked again, this time from the side. Malizor handled both of them quite well, and could have continued on this pace for hours. But Cerlina was quite specific in her battle plan. He was only down there long enough to keep Kim distracted and wear her down. She wanted to make sure all of Kim's attention was on the monster when he killed her friends. For that to happen, she couldn't be fighting Malizor. Seeing the others rangers wearing out against the monster Malizor decided it was time for him to slip away. He quickly threw the two rangers off of him and teleported himself out.

"I guess he didn't want to play anymore." Kim said. She was satisfied that they'd given him quite a beating, but she was wondering why someone of his caliber just took off. Especially since he wasn't close to losing yet.

"Good." Jason replied with a nod. "Gives us a chance to focus on the monster."

"Yeah." Kim agreed, shaking the odd thoughts away as they ran to join the others. Kim and Jason quickly jumped in on the action, attacking the monster with their weapons. They got a few shots in but were thrown back just as the others continued to hit the monster.

As Kim fell back to the ground the communicator inside her helmet went off. "Go ahead." Kim said as she stood, hoping that Billy had analyzed the situation and had some sort of answer for them.

"He's not going down without a stronger punch." Billy spoke quickly.

Kim snorted, interrupting any train of thought the blue ranger had. "Tell me something we didn't know."

"I do have a solution for you." Billy said, wishing she would have let him finish. "I've been working hard to develop a cannon for the team to use in situations such as this. I believe that it is ready for use in battle."

"A cannon?" Kim repeated, her mood already improving. "I assume this means I can go ahead and give it a shot."

"You're welcome to test out the Sonic Cannon whenever you're ready." Billy replied. It wasn't that hard to create. He'd taken some of the old designs from cannons of the past and combined it with new technology to create something he thought the rangers might like.

Kim ended their transmission and immediately called her team back to her side. A few seconds later the remaining five rangers were falling in line behind her. "What's going on?" Tommy asked from her side.

"Billy got us a gift. I thought we could test it out." Kim replied, glaring at the monster. "We need the Sonic Cannon now!" she called out.

The item in question fell into the hands of the six team members. After they spent a few seconds marveling over Billy's latest creation, they quickly refocused and turned their attention to the monster, whose taunts hadn't stopped since they backed up. Quickly they took their spots around the cannon as Kim gave the order to fire.

Within seconds the monster in front of them was blasted into monster bits. Not ready to call it quits, Cerlina made the monster grow. Kim called for the Sonic Zords and the team went to work on the skyscraper sized monster. It only took a few minutes after the formation of the Megazord for them to bring the monster down for good. Once they were satisfied the battle was over, the rangers teleported off back to their everyday lives.

* * *

Minions scattered from the palace's main room as Cerlina took out her anger on all who stood near. Several Cryobots were destroyed in the process but Cerlina didn't seem to care. They were easy enough to make and they made for some much needed target practice.

As her anger seemed to calm down some, Malizor walked into the main room and approached her. "Perhaps we need to rethink our plan." He suggested to her. Her response was only natural. Any leader with her power and ambition wouldn't tolerate one failure, let alone three. She was handling the situation about as well as could be expected however the only way to fix the situation would be to go in another direction.

"Our plan?" Cerlina questioned, snapping all her focus toward him. "Our plan is not the issue. Destroy the rangers, destroy everything little Kimmie holds dear, then leave her for me to torture and kill. It's quite simple. There's just a snag in achieving that plan."

"If we are going to destroy the rangers with a monster we need to figure out a new kind of monster. Everything we are coming up with, they are finding ways to defeat." Malizor continued on giving her is input.

"That is the real snag." Cerlina said definitively as she twirled around and marched over to her chair, taking a seat before continuing. "We step up our game and they step up theirs. I don't like it, it's not fair."

"I will have Finkus retool his monster making immediately to create something better, something up to your standards." Malizor said as he turned to walk away. He would leave her to think of anything else she could come up with. She was a good strategist on her own and he knew that better monsters would be a start.

"Wait." Cerlina said holding up a finger. She watched as the giant red demon turned slowly to face her.

"Yes?" he questioned, surprised that she had thought of something already.

"We know that they're not coming up with this on their own. That someone is helping them." She reiterated the realization they had come up with when the rangers got their zords. "That same someone had to have given them the cannon. Who's to say that he won't be able to foil our next upgrade?"

Malizor was suddenly very confused. "Are you saying not to try?"

"No." Cerlina snapped, unhappy that he'd even suggest that. "I'm saying to go ahead and let Finkus do whatever it is he does to create better monsters. But we're not going to send them down yet."

"How long shall we hold the monsters off for?" Malizor asked, hoping to get some sort of strategy out of this conversation. It wasn't quite making any sense.

"I have a project for you." Cerlina said, ignoring Malizor's confusion at her not answering his question directly. "In order to win we must stop them from gaining advantages. In order to do that we must cut them off at their source."

"You want me to kill whoever is helping the rangers?" Malizor asked as her plan started to come into focus.

"No not yet. Find out who's helping them first. Who would be smart enough and dumb enough to lend a hand against me." Cerlina said as the wheels were turning. "Kill whoever you need to for the information, but when you have it bring it back to me. I'll decide how to proceed from there."

Malizor nodded. The task was simple enough. "I will speak to Finkus then I will depart."

"Good." Cerlina said as she dismissed him with a wave of her hand. That would make things much simpler and she could go back to forming some sort of a plan. Once the rangers' aide was appropriately taken care of there would be no one left to help them.

What she did after that would be simple. She'd send down her more advanced monsters, knowing there was no one there to make them more advanced weaponry. It would be almost too easy. The monster would kill them all except the little red one, and then start destroying things as they pleased her. It wouldn't be long before things were back to normal and she could actually enjoy herself.

* * *

Zhane and Karone stood in the living room of Ashley and Andros's house. They had plans to meet up with them that afternoon, and after the battle they teleported themselves on over. Andros and Zhane were in the middle of an in depth conversation about the day's monster fight and what the implications were in the days battle.

Karone couldn't help but be amused. Andros never stopped concerning himself with ranger matters. He was a former ranger turned intergalactic diplomat who specialized in keeping the peace. His had a variety of tasks, ranging from the more peaceful task of negotiations, to in the worst case scenarios recruiting teams of rangers to deal with problems. Those kinds of problems were the ones where you had the scum of the universe out there, someone like Astronema who only wanted destruction and to rule the world in the name of evil. If a threat like that arose, Andros would typically dispense the Astro morphers and send a new team out there. On one case he went himself, as he collaborated with Tommy who got all the former red rangers involved.

He never kept up with the intricate details of the battles other teams went in to; he usually just received progress reports. And he especially hadn't been concerned with the numerous reports of activity around Earth. But ever since he found out about Ashley he had been drilling her and Zhane about every detail regarding the current conflict with Cerlina and how they were handling it, and most importantly what it meant for Angel Grove.

At the thought of Ashley, Karone realized she hadn't seen her sister-in-law since she and Zhane arrived. Looking around she caught a glimpse of her on the back porch sipping tea. She slipped away from the boys and headed out back. "Hey." She greeted.

"Hello." Ashley replied with a smile as she gestured to the seat next to her. Karone started to sit and she continued. "I didn't realize you guys were here."

"Your husband was keeping us occupied." Karone said with a smile.

Ashley smiled back and shook her head. "About the latest battle?" She asked as Karone nodded. "I should've known. It's all he thinks about. Where are the strategic places for attacks. How long is this going to last. How do we keep me far away from it."

"You can't blame him. You're having his baby. And he wants to do everything to protect both of you." Karone pointed out the news Ashley and Andros had given them a few days prior. "It's hard enough raising a child. Especially on Earth with everything they worry about here. Add in the fact that you guys are former rangers who actually know what's out there, he's going to worry."

Ashley nodded. It drove her nuts sometimes but Karone was right. Having a baby was hard enough without worrying about your home town being attacked, or you being attacked because of who you were. Andros was especially concerned that with his intergalactic involvements and with Karone and Zhane's ranger involvements someone would have an excuse to come after them.

"I do wish he'd take a few deep breaths. After all, you guys will let him know if something comes up." Ashley said as she thought about it. He was right to worry about that, as well as everything else, but they still needed to try and relax and concentrate more on the pregnancy and what was going to happen, not what could happen.

"I'm sure he will after he gets used to you being pregnant." Karone replied. She understood why her brother was worried but she had a feeling he would calm down after a while. "Besides if anyone tries to come after my little niece or nephew, they'll have a Sonic Force ranger to deal with." And although she didn't want to point this out to Ashley, there were enough people out there that would leave them alone because they were still frightened of who Karone once was. The rest of them wouldn't stand a chance.

"That's right." Ashley said, giggling as she put her hand down to her stomach and looked down to talk to her unborn child. "You hear that? You've got Power Rangers personally protecting you. Nobody is going to mess with you."

Karone smiled. She certainly hoped that was true. Although she was more afraid of other kids picking on their child and not aliens. Andros was Kaoan, making the baby half Kaoan, meaning who knew what traits or skills of their people it would inherit. She was afraid their child would be looked at as odd, an outcast. After all, Earth wasn't exactly an open society. Despite the fact that they'd had contact with other worlds, and that people from other worlds had come to their rescue, they still refused to acknowledge other worlds and the people that lived on them. Although, they had only been exposed to the Power Rangers for fourteen years and it was evident that society was already changing. Maybe by the time her niece or nephew was starting to make its way into society, society would be ready to accept peaceful people from other worlds.

"Your baby is going to be just fine." Karone assured her. She certainly wasn't going to tell her what thoughts had crossed her mind in the last few days, not yet. She and Andros had enough on their plates at the moment without that to consider.

"I'm sure it will be." Ashley replied. She had no doubts that she and Andros would make good parents, or that they would be able to keep their child safe.

Karone glanced back into the house to the two boys, who were still having quite the conversation. From the amused look on Zhane's face, she doubted it had anything to do with the rangers anymore. "Should we go check on them?"

Taking a moment, Ashley glanced back as well to see what it was that Karone saw. "I think so." She said with a smile. "Knowing the two of them, who knows what they're getting into." Ashley stood and waited for Karone to stand as well before both women headed back into the house.

* * *

Jason sat in his tiny office working on finalizing some stuff before his deadlines came up. He sighed and looked it over. He was almost convinced that it was as good as it was going to get.

"Hey dude." Rob Mitchell, Jason's boss said as he rapped once on the door frame and ducked his head into the office. "You got this week's advice ready yet?"

"It's my opinion and it's as good as it's going to be." Jason said as he glanced over it one last time. He almost didn't make his deadline because of the earlier battle, but fortunately for him this had become quite easy over the years.

"That's what we pay you for." Rob replied. Jason's advice wasn't the fluffy stuff that advice was usually made of, but it sold magazines and that's what counted.

Jason handed him the print out of the five letters and responses that they were going to run in the next month's issue. "I guess you're right." He said with a smile.

"Later." Rob said taking the article from him and heading out of his office.

Jason simply shook his head as he left. He couldn't help but think back to how he'd gotten himself in this position in the first place. It started years ago, back while he was in college. He and his roommate were goofing around along with Rob, who was his roommate's brother. A few beers into the night Rob was giving them more details than they would usually care to listen to about a men's magazine he and some buddies were starting up. Rob had pointed out that both his brother and Jason were decent writers and that they should pitch in. In an alcohol inspired moment Jason said, "yeah, I'll write the advice column."

The next day Rob asked him if he was still up for it and Jason said what the hell. Both men knew Jason wasn't exactly Mr. Sensitive, but they figured it would be a fun joke for the first issue, to come up with some fake help letters and have Jason give his honest brutal opinion. To keep the backlash away from Jason, he wrote his responses as Arnold. Much to everyone's surprise, the first issue came out and they got bags of reader mail saying that their favorite column was Arnold's column and could he help them with their problems.

Jason didn't understand it. Neither did Rob, but he quickly signed him on as a full time writer. Jason was blunt, often politically incorrect, but after the first few issues he was becoming wildly successful. It only took a few years before his advice column became syndicated and Arnold was an advice phenomenon. They were even in talks to make a movie based on Arnold's life.

Of course nothing about Arnold's life was real, but nobody could sort anything about him out. There had been some serious attempts made at digging up who Arnold really was but so far nothing had come of it. The only people who knew who Arnold actually was were the magazine founders and Jason's former roommate. His office was on the same floor as Rob's and very few people were allowed up there, and no one could figure out what he did. Most speculated Jason was nothing more than Rob's assistant.

Arnold was said to want to lead a quiet life. That kept most from digging too much into his background, but it didn't keep people from making things up about him. Over the years Arnold has taken on a personality of his own. Some of the things people said about Arnold were ignored, while others stuck. Arnold was a former high school athlete, he was gay, he was into hiking and canoeing and moonlit walks down trails. Jason used to let what was considered fact about Arnold get to him. But Rob pointed that the farther away they were from who Jason was, the less chance there was of anyone figuring out who Arnold actually was. Jason couldn't really argue that point. Just by being himself in answering advice he was making a ton of money. So he allowed Arnold to grow into whatever the media made him. That was the man that the movie was going to be about. And actually, from what the media had developed Arnold into over the years it was going to be quite interesting.

Jason glanced at his watch. It was close enough to the end of the day. This month's letters had been turned in and it was certainly too late to start digging through his mail. Picking out letters to reply to is the most tedious part of the job. He has to pick the five juiciest new letters to put in the magazine each month. Then he has to find other, less interesting letters to write replies for on his weekly internet column, which was part of the paid online service that was owned by the magazine.

And he certainly didn't want to start fooling with any of that now. Jason took his flash drive which held the back up of his column out of his desktop before logging off. He slipped the drive into a desk drawer and locked it before grabbing his keys and heading home for the night.

* * *

Kim walked around the small Angel Grove apartment that she and Tommy had just started renting the previous day. They were fortunate that it had been fully furnished, and moving consisted of nothing more than packing up all their clothes and any items Tommy needed for work and bringing them down. They had tossed most of their clothes in boxes and bags and thrown them on the floor of their bedroom, and with the exception of the attacks Kim spent the day putting her things away.

Now that she was finished she wanted to spend a little time with Tommy. She ducked into the small second room that was set up as an office and was surprised to see that he wasn't there. Turning around and heading out to the living room, she found him sitting on the couch with the news on and his laptop on the coffee table.

"Change of scenery?" She asked as she went to sit beside him. He spent part of yesterday and almost all of today sitting in that office.

"Mostly." Tommy replied. The cramped space of the office was something he was not used to and after a while he elected to get some air, leaving the office and figuring it was a good a time as any to catch up on the news.

Kim nodded and glanced from him to the television. "Anything good on?"

"Actually I think we're the next news story." Tommy replied. The anchor had alluded to the days monster attack before the commercial. Although he didn't expect much more than a quick "power rangers saved the day again" piece he was still curious as to what they were going to say.

Kim had something to say but she changed her mind when the anchor flashed up across the screen. "Well we're about to find out."

"Our next story begins from the scene of an earlier monster attack. Reporting to us live is Carri Hillard with all the details." The anchorwoman said as the camera switched over.

"Thanks Julia." Fox news reporter Carri Hillard said, flashing a smile as she was set to begin her story. "I'm standing here at the scene of an earlier monster attack where Angel Grove was, once again, saved by the Power Rangers. I was fortunate enough to be here earlier when all of the action took place and we were able to record some clips."

The footage from earlier played as Carri's voice came through, narrating what she had recorded that afternoon. Kim and Tommy watched as she got relatively close to the action for a civilian. She got a good look at the monster and the rangers as they fought the monster, Malizor and the Cryobots and was there as they fired the cannon on him. She even got an amazingly close shot of the monster growing and the zords forming, staying with the action until the monster was brought down for good.

"Christ." Tommy swore as they watched the action unfold on TV. He wasn't sure what bothered him more, the fact that she thought it was safe to get that close or the fact that she was the one reporting on the story. He knew Carri Hillard; he had met her a few times when he was dating Kat. The two girls were cousins, and she had shown up once or twice at family events and he had gone on a double date with her and her then boyfriend. He didn't know her well, but he did know she was relentless when she worked a story.

The action ended and the camera cut back to the live feed. "As you can see the power rangers sent the monster packing with no problems. This city owes a lot to those heroes's. The hero's that, in this reporter's opinion, are the same hero's that originally came to Angel Grove's defense almost fourteen years ago." Carri paused and smiled at the audience. There were similarities she'd picked up on and now that she was given permission to work the Power Rangers stories she'd have to go see if she could pull old footage. This could turn out to be one hell of a story but it will take a lot of digging. "Stay tuned to Fox news for developments on that story and more. I promise to keep my loyal viewers informed of the Power Rangers fights to save our town as well as any information I can find out about them, including the identities of those who have come to protect us." She paused and tried to look as charming as she could as she glanced into the camera. "Back to you Julia."

Tommy turned the volume down on the television and looked over at Kim. "This is not good." Kim was quick to point out. Although she didn't personally know Carri, through her work as a morning show hostess she knew of her. Carri had a reputation for getting to the bottom of things. She was a local reporter who was sometimes used as a national correspondent, mostly when she got a hold of details behind a story that no one else could get. The Power Rangers identities would certainly be a national story and she would stop at nothing to get that information.

"I know." Tommy said with a sigh, leaning back in his seat as memories of the Dino Thunder team came flooding back. They had been caught in the act, filmed by a student reporter who was determined to find out their identities. And although she had been kind enough to turn the tape over, there was no guarantee Carri would do the same should she catch them. "She won't let up on this."

"So you've heard of her too?" Kim asked. She shouldn't be surprised; she'd made quite a name for herself in California.

"We've met. She's Kat's cousin." Tommy replied, choosing not to elaborate any further. He didn't want to discuss Kat with Kim and he was fairly certain she didn't want to hear it.

"Oh." Kim said, surprised that she'd never heard that information before. "Do you think Kat can talk her into backing off?"

Tommy shook his head. "Doubtful. Even when we were together she mentioned something about them drifting apart as they got older. I don't think they're close enough for her to listen." He thought about it for a moment before he continued. "Besides she doesn't strike me as someone who is going to back off just because she's asked to. Kat would have to give her a valid reason why she shouldn't pursue the story and I don't see how she can do that without revealing our identities. And I certainly don't know Carri well enough to trust her with that secret."

"Ok." Kim said as she was inclined to agree with him. Having people find out was one thing, but telling a news reporter was a gamble they couldn't afford to take. "We'll just be extra careful. Tell the team no morphing or teleporting near the scene."

"Anywhere in the vicinity of the scene." Tommy added to be clear. She was obviously lurking quite close to that afternoon's fight, who knew where she'd be when there was a monster attack.

"Agreed." Kim said with a sigh as she leaned back into the couch. This battle was already going to be tougher than she'd anticipated. She knew Cerlina was a fierce opponent, but with Malizor and her ability to make monsters, plus them having to look over their shoulders all the time for reporters this was turning out to be quite the campaign. It made her miss her youth, with Rita's less threatening ideas and her monsters, and the only attempts to figure out their secret were the lame efforts of Bulk and Skull. But as times changed, so did battle, and they would have to figure out a way to be successful and move on. And they would, after all they had Billy on their side, thwarting every attempt at an upgrade Cerlina made. Kim smiled to herself as she felt a sudden surge of confidence in their mission, before leaning into Tommy and enjoying some quiet time watching the evening news.


	12. Missing Wolf

**Dislcaimer:** Rangers are still Disney's, Marie is still KSuzie's and everyone else is still mine :)

Return To Action  
"Missing Wolf"

Cerlina found herself sitting in her palace rather disappointed. It had been several days since the last unsuccessful attack on Kimmie. She was poised and ready to attack again. But she couldn't, she wasn't one to deviate from her plan. And her plan was simple. Cut the source of the ranger's toys off and then take them out.

For that she was waiting on word from Malizor. She expected him to return soon, after all she couldn't imagine that he'd have to beat that many people to get simple information. It wasn't like she'd asked him to find out something difficult. Simply who was helping the rangers. And there were enough creatures out there that valued their own lives more than anything else that would be willing to share that information.

She had visions of what she was going to do this creature when she caught them. Torture and kill was certainly on the top of the list. Depending on how important the creature was, they may make a good bargaining chip for the rangers. Although they didn't really have anything worth bargaining for. Except for the lives of the five other rangers for their assistant. And they'd never go for that. Besides once this creature was out of the picture she'd have free reign to take out the other rangers as she saw fit. They'd never be able to keep up with her advancements without assistance from someone. And no creature in the galaxy would be stupid enough to help them after they found out what happened to the last soul who tried.

Of course there were other, more beneficial things than torturing or killing, but she'd work those out later. Depending on who it was would depend on if they were even worth the effort. She wasn't too concerned with that right now though. She just wanted Malizor to return so she could start to plot how to get to this mystery helper.

Just when she thought she couldn't take it any longer, Malizor came walking through the hallway. "Cerlina." He greeted with a brisk bow.

"I hope you have some news." She said. She'd have expecting him to come bursting through full of energy, knowing that he had information that she was dying for. But then again, this was Malizor, and the only time he ever showed emotion was while in battle.

"Of course." Malizor wouldn't have been stupid enough to return without useful information.

"And?" Cerlina questioned, unable to contain her curiosity much longer.

"My path led me to an Aquitarian." He started. By path he meant all the people he had to torture in order to get the information he wanted. "Apparently he used to know the man helping the rangers."

"So he's half fish?" Cerlina replied, making a face. She wasn't fond of the Aquatarians, for whatever reason they irked her.

"He's human. He lived on Aquatar for a long time while he worked as a well renowned intergalactic scientist." Malizor continued. After he tortured and killed the Aquitarian's friend, he'd spilled more information than he needed to know. Although it was helpful, it was quite pathetic.

"Oh?" Cerlina question. This definitely peaked her interest. Scientists were always fun.

"He is still working for the intergalactic community although his primary base is off of Earth now in the rangers Command Center." Malizor informed her. "The young man in question is Zordon's original blue ranger, once the blue wolf ninjetti, William Cranston."

"Really?" Cerlina squealed with delight. This was better than anything she'd ever hoped for. He was one of Zordon's rangers, he had to have been close to Kim, and Dulcea gave him a spirit guide. That means by getting to him, she'd not only ruin Kim's day but she'd put a cramp in Dulcea's as well. That news was more than enough to make up for the days of pacing.

"How do you suggest we proceed from here?" Although he had enjoyed his mission, he was more than ready to get back to the fight at hand.

"Obviously we need to retrieve Willie so we can get back to torturing Kimmie and killing her friends." Cerlina said as if it were the most absurd thing she'd ever been asked.

"According to the Aquitarian, William doesn't have a home on Earth at the moment and spends most of his time in the quarters he set up in his Command Center." Malizor informed her. "Leaving us with the issue of how to get him out so we can take him."

"Yes you're right. That is a problem. Not one that I can't fix though." Cerlina said as she sat down and thought about it. There had to be some way she could draw him out into the open.

"Perhaps we can give him something outside of his Command Center worth investigating himself. Then the moment he's in view we can sweep in and capture him." Malizor suggested. It would have to be something that wouldn't draw a lot of attention, something that he'd be inclined to look at and not think he'd need to send a ranger to look at.

"It would have to be good." Cerlina pointed out. "If he suspects foul play he'll just teleport himself back. Perhaps he'll do that anyway."

She stood from her chair and started pacing around. Malizor was right; getting him out of there was a challenge. Although she was not going to change her plan just because it was harder than what she was hoping for. She needed to get to him, that was a simple fact that was non-negotiable. Winning while he was making their toys was going to be much more difficult than she wanted to fool with. It could be done, after all she was a brilliant strategist. She simply didn't want to fool with it. She had no idea that her plot for revenge against Kimmie would be this hard in the first place. Not that she had any thoughts of not going through. If anything she wanted more than ever to destroy her world and ultimately her. Anyone who caused this much of a headache more than deserved it.

As the pacing continued an idea came to her. "I know how we're going to get Billy out." She said as she stopped and turned to Malizor. "Let's find Finkus, see if he's really as smart as they say he is." With that Cerlina marched out, Malizor following close behind.

* * *

Rocky sat in the office of his Angel Grove school. Everything was going according to plan and he couldn't be happier. At the start of the next week his schools would close down and would be reopened under the new name. It hadn't taken nearly as long as he was afraid it was going to. His students and families had been understanding and were ready for the switch.

Everything else seemed to be getting better as well. With the increase in beginner's classes he suddenly had an influx of money. There was a buyer interested in the home he and Marie once shared and if that went through, he'd get that money as well. Even with thinking about expanding his franchise he still expected to have the money to get himself a small house and replace all the things that were lost in the divorce.

Even rangering was going well. Sure it was slightly different and a little bit more difficult than high school, but it was the revival that he needed. He felt like a new man every time he morphed and he loved it. Although he wanted the conflict to end quickly, there was a selfish part of him that wouldn't mind if it dragged on for a while. Of course there were new elements that they'd never had to deal with before, and Tommy had spent an hour lecturing them all on the importance of morphing far away from the scene. Apparently there was a reporter snooping around, but Rocky wasn't all that certain he wasn't overreacting as there were always reporters snooping around.

Rocky was pulled out of his thoughts as the phone rang. "Hello?" He greeted picking up the receiver.

"How dare you not tell me?" It was the only thorn from his past life left in his side. Although they were legally not together anymore, she wouldn't leave him alone.

"Tell you what?" He replied with a sigh. Had he known it was Marie on the phone he wouldn't have picked up.

"That you're closing your school and changing the name." She said, practically in hysterics. "I had to hear it from a student who heard it from a friend in Stone Canyon. And they wanted to know why we weren't changing."

"These are legally my two schools and I can do with them as I please." Rocky quickly reminded her.

"What about my schools that we built? And the new school I want us to build?" That was really what her anger was all about. Rocky was the reputation for Angel Grove Martial Arts and if his name was no longer associated with the franchise there was no guarantee that her schools would be successful. And she needed the money.

"You're schools are not my concern, the lawyers took care of that." Rocky said, smiling to himself as he spoke. He thought about how he hadn't returned any of her calls in regards to building a new school and he figured now was as good a time as any to go over that as well. "And as far as new schools go, I'm not sure I really want to go down that path."

"You can't do that!" She yelled. She didn't know the first thing about opening a school. She was doomed to failure if she couldn't con him into helping her. She couldn't afford that, already she was having difficulty affording the lifestyle she wanted to live. "If we're going to have a jointly owned school, you have to be involved. You do get half the profits, you have to help me run it."

"I've been thinking about the jointly owned thing, and I do have this new franchise of schools I'm working on building." Rocky paused a moment while he let her think about that. "I was thinking maybe I should just sign the name of the old schools over to you and that name will be all yours. That way we can both do our own thing."

He knew she didn't care about schools, she just liked the idea of sharing one with him. He had no idea what would happen once he gave her the name. He did know that some of his old students were unhappy with Marie taking control and some of the instructors had already quit. He assured them that he would open United Martial Arts schools near the current schools. His instructors were going to teach part time at his old schools with all the new beginner students before moving to the new schools, where he expected a lot of Angel Grove Martial Arts students to follow.

"What?" Marie questioned, the sharpness in her voice not lost on Rocky.

"It's only fair, that way we can both move on." He assured her.

"No, you can't do this to me." Marie hissed. This wasn't fair, it wasn't right. He was going to leave her with nothing but a low paying job as a teacher and a few martial arts schools she had no idea how to run.

"I'm going to do what's best." Rocky said. It was certainly what was best for him, and in all honesty it was probably what was best for his students. He already felt bad enough for the ones who had to endure the changes that had been going on in his other two schools. "We've been through this Marie. We're not married anymore, it's not like I owe you anything." He had already given her more in this divorce than one should and although he meant it, he regretted the comment almost instantly.

"What?" Marie asked in a shrill voice. "You owe me everything. You've ruined me."

Rocky sighed. There was no need for the dramatics. "Look Marie, I'll own United Martial Arts and you'll have Angel Grove Martial Arts. You're not ruined, you're already established. You'll be fine." He knew that was a lie but he just wanted to calm her down and get her off the phone.

"I won't let you." Marie's words were intended to be more of a threat than anything.

"You don't have a choice." Rocky replied. He had the legal right to opt out of the name Angel Grove Martial Arts. It was her choice to take the name or give up her rights to it, in which case she'd have to close her schools as well. "Look Marie, I've got to go, I've got work to do. Bye."

Before she could protest Rocky hung up the phone, shaking his head. He was glad to not have to deal with her anymore for the moment. As the phone rang again he let his better judgment take over, watching as the light for line one stopped blinking and the voicemail light came on. It was time to forget about her and go back to trying to get some work done before class started.

* * *

As Jason threw his napkin on his empty plate he took a swig of his beer, staring at the man in front of him. It had been odd to get invited for food and beer by Tommy. There had been a time once when they hung out constantly, but that time had long past.

Tommy was once his brother. They had gotten so close when Tommy moved to Angel Grove. Tommy wormed his way into everything Angel Grove, including the leadership of the team and Kim's heart. Jason, for the most part, was thrilled about it. It was why leaving for the Peace Conferences hadn't been as hard as he feared. He'd left the team in capable hands, as well as the girl he'd grown up thinking of as a sister.

He'd have to admit, he'd been disappointed in Tommy when he came home to find that he and Kim were split. But he wasn't angry, after all it was Kim who had done the splitting. When he joined the team as the gold ranger he and Tommy started hanging out again and it was almost just like old times. Until Jason lost his powers and he took off. He left Angel Grove so that he could gather his thoughts. That's when he ran into Kim and they had decided to vacation together. That was a mistake.

After the incident on Muiranthias he didn't see much of Tommy. Jason enrolled in college and Tommy did the same, only several hours away in a fast paced program that didn't leave him much time for catching up with old friends. There were still phone calls here and there, but for the most part Tommy was working hard on getting his doctorate while working with Mercer and trying to keep up with current ranger activity. Eventually he got a team of his own, and Jason hadn't spoken to him since.

It was nice to see him at the Mercer residence a few months ago, and it was even nicer to be able to ranger with him again. Things were definitely different than high school when they were bros, but here he was fighting with Tommy, and Kim as well and it seemed all was right again. Although it wasn't much, he had both of them back in his life. After the Turbo rangers rescued them he hadn't expected to ever be able to have Tommy and Kim both in his life like back in high school. But here they were together and getting married. No one was more surprised than him to hear this. Kim had always been pretty adamant that things were over between the two of them. But he should've known that one day they'd have a second chance.

Although now the rangering with his old friends was there, there was one thing missing from the equation and that was the personal relationships. He and Kim talked on occasion now that they were on the same team again and it was nice. He'd known her most of his life and he missed having her around. Tommy he hardly spoke to at all. That's why it was strange when he called yesterday asking if he wanted to go hang out. No matter how weird it was, Jason jumped at the opportunity to try and reconnect with his friend.

It had felt off at first. There was a lot of small talk and neither of them felt comfortable with what to say or how to act. But in the last thirty minutes conversation had been flowing and all the awkwardness of not seeing each other for years had melted away.

"So do you have work to do after this?" Tommy questioned as the waitress brought them their check.

Jason chuckled thinking about work. He hadn't really told Tommy what he did, only that he worked for a magazine. It wasn't that it was something he didn't want to tell Tommy, but he hadn't told any of the rangers, not even Kim. It seemed kind of strange to share it considering it was such a closely guarded secret. "Nope, I'm good for today. What about you?"

Tommy paused before answering as both men threw money up on the table to pay for their lunches. Leaning back in his chair he shook his head. "Kim was pretty insistent that I take a take a full day off away from my laptop." Kim had been thrilled that he wanted to spend time with an old friend. When he wasn't working or rangering, the only one he ever saw was her.

Tommy smiled at Jason who laughed in response. Kim could always talk Tommy into anything, and now that she was a red he could only imagine that her skills of persuasion had improved. Picking up his beer, he polished off the little bit that was left at the bottom. "I have an idea." He said as he stood.

"What?" Tommy questioned looking up at his friend.

"I'll show you." Jason replied quickly as he headed toward the exit. Tommy jumped up and quickly followed, curious as to what Jason had in mind.

* * *

Billy sat in the Command Center doing work much like any other day. It was what he was used to doing, it was all he did. He lived there, he ate off of a synthetron there, he slept there, that building consumed his life. It was his life.

It wasn't that he'd intentionally orchestrated it that way. He was actually living quite the high end life on Aquitar. He was well off as a scientist in the intergalactic community. His bank account was loaded with funds. But none of that came in handy on Earth. When he decided to come home to help save his planet, everything changed.

He wouldn't take that decision back, he was proud to be able to help his friends and save his home world again. His biggest problem was that despite how much money he had in the bank account, none of it was good here. He couldn't purchase or rent a place to live, he couldn't go shopping for food or clothes or anything. Intergalactic currency was useless on Earth, and as Earth wasn't part of any sort of intergalactic council his money couldn't be traded or exchanged for dollars.

The one thing he did have, the one asset that he contemplated using, was his inventions. He had done well over the years with what he created. Sadly, in comparison to other cultures the human race was quite primitive and in order to give them anything he created he'd have to dumb the technology down. But he had a lot of ideas that would be beneficial to his home world, and with some tweaking he could get the patents for them and sell the technology. That would give him more than enough money to actually live on Earth, to get a house, a car, clothes, food.

Of course by doing that he'd be committed to staying on Earth for more than just this campaign. But perhaps it was time for that. He'd been away from home for far too long. And although he was well off on Aquitar, he wasn't quite sure he was still happy there. Some of his personal relationships had deteriorated to the point of disaster, especially the one with Cestria, his onetime mate.

This was his opportunity to reconnect with Earth and with Angel Grove. He had no idea what to expect in doing so, but he felt as though almost ten years away was long enough. Besides with all he knew, all he learned, he could be quite beneficial to his home planet in more ways than just assisting the rangers. Although this was an issue he had been struggling with for a while now, suddenly he felt as though his mind was made up. It was time to settle back home.

The former blue ranger was pulled out of his thoughts when several of his sensors started going haywire. He headed over toward one of the panels and got the noise to stop before starting a search for what the interference was. It didn't take long for his scanners to pick up on the source.

He was puzzled, it appeared as though his equipment was getting crossed with nothing more than radio signals from something that was sitting around the perimeter. He couldn't imagine how something like this could've gotten there unless it fell out of a plane passing over head. But usually he was quite aware of these things. His equipment never missed something major.

For a moment he thought about contacting one of the rangers and having them check it out. But according to his sensors whatever it was, it was relatively harmless. He'd prefer not to interrupt their day with something he could grab himself. Mind made up, he lifted his communicator up and teleported himself outside.

Quickly he spotted the object in question sitting on the ground, the dust swirling everywhere around it. As he approached it a voice called his name from behind. He spun around, more than a little surprised to see Cerlina and Malizor standing there. "What do you want?" he asked. He wasn't sure what possessed him to stand and face her, he should just make a swift exit and alert the others.

"Isn't it obvious?" Cerlina asked as she smiled crookedly at him. When Billy didn't respond she continued. "You of course."

Billy quickly decided it was time to make a speedy exit and he lifted his communicator up and pressed the button. When nothing happened he tried several more times as Cerlina stood there and laughed at him.

"There's more to that little toy than what your sensors told you." She said with a smile. They had worked hard on creating something that would deceive him, something that would get him to come out unguarded and unprotected so they could take him away.

"You won't get away with this." Billy said with more confidence than he felt. He didn't even know what this was, he had no clue what they'd want with him, he wasn't even a morphing ranger.

"Please, do you think your little friends are going to rescue you?" Cerlina asked. She snorted as she thought about it. "Do you think I'm going to even give them the opportunity?" She watched as the expression on Billy's face changed as he realized exactly what was going on here. "Don't you worry though. I will let Kimmie know exactly what happened to you. I wouldn't want her to miss out on any of the fun." She couldn't wait to see the look on Kimmie's face when she realized exactly what she was doing to her friend.

Billy wasn't sure what to do. He couldn't teleport out but perhaps he could call for help, assuming they could even get there in time. "Kim." He spoke quickly into his communicator as Malizor walked toward him. "Kim." He said again, a bit more hurried this time. When he thought he heard her reply he continued. "I need immediate assistance. Malizor and Cerlina"

That was as far as he was allowed to get before Malizor grabbed his wrist and twisted it, forcing him to the ground. Seconds later they all disappeared, taking the device with them. There were no traces left of what had happened to the former blue ranger.

* * *

Kim found herself sitting in the most peaceful place she knew, far away from her Angel Grove home. She had the day to herself as Tommy had gone off with Jason, both of them wanting to reconnect. Although neither would admit it, they both missed all the time they hung out together in high school.

For the most part Kim was quite pleased with a day to herself. It gave her time to reflect, to focus, to reenergize herself. The situation with Cerlina was quickly spiraling into much more than she'd ever anticipated. Although she shouldn't be surprised, she remembered all the hateful things Cerlina said years ago when she left Phaedos.

Sometimes she wondered if she shouldn't have come back to Earth at all. Was it not her being there that put everyone in danger now? It was possible that just by knowing her once they were in danger. But without her attachment to her home world, her attachment to Tommy, perhaps things would be different. Cerlina would have most certainly not seen it necessary to bring an entire army with her if she didn't think Earth was so important to Kim. Perhaps they could have battled each other and this whole thing would have been over by now.

Selfishly Kim was glad that wasn't the case. She wasn't happy about Cerlina's need to kill everyone but if she hadn't gone back to Earth she wouldn't have had her second chance with Tommy. She had forgotten how amazing it was to be with him. No other relationship she'd been in, including the one with Jeff when she was younger or the recent disaster with Cole, had even a tenth of the intensity of what she had with Tommy.

She was loving every minute of her second chance. And although her life wouldn't run its course like his, she couldn't wait to be his wife and live the rest of his life together. When she was sixteen her fantasy life with Tommy was all she thought about. All these years later, although the fantasy is gone, the life with Tommy was still as appealing.

"Kimberly?" A voice spoke from behind the red ranger.

Startled at first, Kim jumped and turned before realizing that she should know who the only person was who could bother her here. "Hello." She greeted.

Dulcea looked at her strangely. "What are you doing here?" she questioned. She was always welcomed yet she wasn't expecting her to show up.

"Reflecting." Kim replied simply. She gave Dulcea a small smile. It was the first time she'd returned to Phaedos since she rushed to the planet's rescue several weeks ago. She hadn't even had a chance to tell Dulcea about the latest developments.

"Is everything alright?" Dulcea was aware that this was a popular spot for Kim during the years that she trained here. But the only time she came back after that was when something was wrong.

"Cerlina went after Earth once she left here. She wants to destroy me." Kim replied. She had no intentions on hiding the truth from her.

"That is to be expected." Dulcea reminded her. It wasn't a welcome thought, but it wasn't a surprise. "She made her intentions quite clear. It was just a matter of what she was going to do."

"She brought an army, Malizor and monsters included." Kim informed her. "I created a team, went after the Sonic Crystal."

Dulcea smiled, somewhat amused. Not many people were aware that it actually existed, and out of that small pool no one would dare go after it. "That is quite a feat." She commented.

Kim nodded. She was well aware that by getting the Sonic Crystal they had done something that no one before them was able to. "It's just…. Well it's Cerlina. I wanted this to end quickly but she keeps pushing harder. Which is why I took a day to myself."

"That is understandable." Dulcea replied. Most humans were known for wanting some time for peace and quiet, although not many would travel this far to get it. But then again, Kim wasn't an ordinary human. "Do you plan on saying long?"

"I don't" Kim stopped short when her communicator went off. "Yes?" She said as she got a scratchy signal in response. "Go ahead?"

It was Billy's voice that came through, she was almost certain of it. Most of it was broken and she was unable to get the full extent of the message. A sudden pain stabbed her in the gut and she feared he was in trouble. "I should return and see what's going on with Billy."

"Of course." Dulcea replied. Kim was certainly there on her own free will, she couldn't force her to stay.

Quickly Kim teleported herself back to Earth, directly to the Command Center. "Billy!" she called out as she proceeded to run room to room. She continued to call out his name and she continued to find every room empty, including the one he slept in.

Taking a few deep breaths, Kim dove into the Command Center's archives for a clue as to where Billy went. Perhaps she was simply overreacting. He could have wanted to show her something, and maybe when she didn't respond he went into the town to talk to one of the others. Just because he wasn't there didn't mean she should automatically think the worst.

She could see that he was working on something, and that the sensors registered for a brief moment something was off. Then Billy teleported outside of the Command Center. That had to be it, he had to be in town with the others. Breathing a sigh of relief, Kim prepared to take off and go in search of the former ranger.

Seconds before her departure the communications link blinked. She was curious as to just who was trying to open a channel with them. They hadn't really spoken to anyone on other worlds since this entire fiasco began. Deciding it was worth her investigating, she opened the link.

"Hello Kimmie." Cerlina's voice said as her face came into focus on the screen.

"Cerlina." Kim said with a snarl. "Did you call to surrender?"

Cerlina laughed uncontrollably for a moment, she hadn't been that amused in a long time. As she looked at her opponent she decided that perhaps she should let her in on the joke. "No although after today you may want to consider surrender as an option." Although she wasn't sure if she wanted her to surrender, it took all the fun out of the fight.

"I hope you're not surprised when I'm not inclined to do so." Kim replied. She was quite confused, Cerlina didn't have a habit of calling to taunt.

"I would expect nothing less." Cerlina replied with a smile. "I'm sure you're wondering what the point of all this is." She said as she glanced at Kim. The look on the red rangers face indicated that she was. "I just wanted to make sure you knew exactly where your friend was and what happened to him when you went looking for him."

With that Cerlina stepped aside and Kim got a good look at Billy, who had been tied up and already suffered a black eye. "Let him go." She ordered with force.

"Let him go? No I don't think so." She said with a smile. "This is going to be too much fun."

"What is this for? Our powers? For me?" Kim asked as she gave Cerlina a deadly look. There had to be a point, there was always a point.

"For my amusement." Cerlina said with a shrug. "For an advantage. Call it what you want. The point is that I have little Willie here and you'll never see him alive again and there's nothing you could possibly offer that will make me change my mind."

"Even myself?" That was, after all, what Cerlina was most after. Kim hated the thought of giving in to her like this but if it would save Billy's life, and the life of her friends she'd sacrifice herself no questions asked.

"Oh no Kimmie we're well past that now." Cerlina said with a smug smile. "Think of this as the beginning. I promised to torture and kill everyone and everything you ever cared about, saving you for last. Your little friend here seems as good a place as any to start."

With that Cerlina abruptly ended the transmission, leaving Kim alone as a wave of guilt rushed over her. This was her fault, she knew it was. She had put her friend's lives in danger. There was only one thing left to do, one thing she could do. She had to contact the others. She didn't know how much time they had but she'd be damned if they weren't going to plan a rescue attempt.


	13. Wolf Rescue

Return To Action  
"Wolf Resuce"

Kim stopped momentarily and thought about what her next course of action would be. Her mind was racing a hundred miles per hour, but it abruptly halted when she realized that she needed to contact the others. She sent out pages to everyone to report to the Command Center immediately.

Tommy was the first to teleport in. One look at his fiancé and he knew something bad had happened. "What's wrong?"

Kim managed to muster up a smile in his direction. She didn't know she was that transparent although she supposed she was upset enough over Billy that it was easy to see. "Wait until the others get here." She said as Karone and Zhane teleported in.

The two Kaoans quickly picked up on the mood as Tommy frowned and Kim looked as though she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders. They said nothing, simply watched the scene as the remaining two rangers teleported in. Jason and Rocky were starting to observe the atmosphere as Karone spoke. "What's going on?" She was ready to get to the point.

"There has been," Kim paused unsure of exactly how to say it. With a sigh, she simply spat it out. "Cerlina kidnapped Billy."

"What?" Jason questioned angrily, not at all happy with one of his oldest friends in the hands of the enemy. "What does she want?"

"Nothing." It was the scary truth, Cerlina wanted nothing from them. Kim shook her head. Nothing wasn't quite the correct answer. "Except to make me suffer. She's going to kill him."

The room was silent for a moment as they all took that in, then all at once everyone spoke in protest. Kim looked around before she spoke. "Guys!" She said loudly in order to quiet them. "I'm mad as well but let's calm down a moment and think about this."

"We can't let this happen." Tommy stated the obvious. He felt horribly that Billy had left his life and his work to live in the Command Center so that he could help him. And now Cerlina was going to kill him for his troubles.

"Why Billy?" Zhane asked. To him if she wanted to destroy the team and hurt Kim, it would make the most sense to start with a ranger. "Why not one of us?"

"What if she knew how much Billy helped us, what he could do for the team." Karone suggested as she thought about Zhane's question. She reflected back on Astronema and realized that it's what she would have done. "Taking him could really throw us back as far as weaponry and advancements go. If she realized that, he's the logical choice."

"It doesn't matter why." Rocky quickly pointed out. He certainly didn't care, there were more important things to worry about. "Do you think, I mean, how much time do we have?"

"I'm not sure. It depends on how long Cerlina wants to make it last." Kim knew it was a harsh answer, but it was the most honest one.

"Which means?" Tommy knew the answer even as he asked, he simply wanted her to say it aloud.

"Which means that there is a very real possibility we'll get up there and they'll be nothing left to save." Kim replied. She looked around as she finished speaking. Everyone was silent.

Karone spoke first, willing to say what everyone else was ignoring. "Breaking into Cerlina's palace is a dangerous mission. If he's dead, will it be worth risking our lives and potentially leaving the planet unprotected?"

Kim thought for a moment. It was a good point but it was still Billy they were talking about. On the off chance that Cerlina might prolong the inevitable just for her sick pleasure, Kim had to try. "Karone's right." She started as the others looked on in surprise. "If Billy's dead and we don't make it back, that's going to leave Earth vulnerable to Cerlina's attacks."

"Kim." Jason started to protest but was cut off by the red ranger.

"However," Kim started not close to done with what she wanted to say, "I know other former rangers would help stand against Cerlina if it came to that. Whether it's a smart decision or not, Billy is an old friend and I'm not going to leave him to die without even attempting a rescue. Not after all he's done for us. I won't force you all to go with me. In fact I'd encourage someone to stay behind. In case we fail you can regroup against Cerlina." She wanted to go up there with more than one ranger for fighting purposes. But it was best to not take the whole team, it would give them more of a chance of not being spotted.

"I'm going with you." For Jason there was no question as to what he was going to do. They were talking about Billy.

Tommy sighed. He knew how difficult this was going to be. But he was doing it for Billy, and besides, he wasn't about to let his fiancé go without him. "Count me in."

"Me too." Rocky quickly chimed in. He would get it if Karone and Zhane wanted to be the ones to stay behind. They didn't know Billy. But he wasn't about to let the others go on this rescue mission without him.

Karone glanced first toward the others and then at Zhane. She was still leaning toward what a bad idea this was. "I'll stay and do what I can from this end." Besides, she would be able to quickly move on and reorganize to go after Cerlina should the need arise.

Zhane found himself quite conflicted. He wanted to fight, but a greater part of him wanted to stay behind and help his girlfriend. He let out a small sigh. "I'll stay with Karone"

Kim nodded. That settled the matter. She would take a team of four to the moon to rescue Billy. Hopefully the five of them would make it back home in one piece.

"All that's left is to figure out how we are going to do this." Kim figured they could execute the rescue while Karone and Zhane monitored what they could from the Command Center. What they would need now was a little bit of luck. "It won't be easy. Her palace is complex. We'll have to pull up every scan and data entry involving the palace that Billy ever made and go from there."

The rest of her team looked at her and nodded. Within seconds they had spread out around the terminals and were searching databases. Kim crossed her fingers that it wouldn't take long to pull some sort of plan together.

* * *

Cerlina watched as Malizor continued to torment the former blue ranger. She watched as he took the pain and glared at her, not giving her the pleasure of a response. Frustrated, Cerlina sighed and walked away for a moment. Seeing that Cerlina's back was turned, Malizor paused as well.

In all honesty this may not have been the best of ideas. She was leaving him alive much longer than she had ever intended to. But it was such a waste to kill him when he could be so useful. She had realized that early on. Besides, Kimmie would already assume he was dead which gave her some time to do whatever she wanted with him.

In the beginning she was going to make it quick and painless. Well perhaps it would've been quick, but as her first step toward retribution against Kimmie it would not have been painless. However when she stepped back and thought about it logically she realized killing him wouldn't do much past satisfy her own cravings. She could do so much more.

It started rather simply. She wanted to get some information out of him. After all he knew everything about more than just this one team of rangers and their weapons. He could fill her with a wealth of knowledge about the good guys that could help propel her toward being the greatest evil being that the world has ever seen. She could be Empress Cerlina, with everyone both good and evil bowing down at her feet. She had to admit, she kind of liked that idea. She especially liked thinking about what Dulcea would say once she destroyed her precious Kimberly and took over the universe.

Of course that was easier said than done. The man had quite the high tolerance for pain. Perhaps it wasn't a tolerance, more like a grand sense of loyalty toward the rangers. Either way, he had yet to give her anything useful. And she tried. She knew lots of extraction methods. The problem was she had to be very careful. Humans were quite delicate and some of the methods she knew would kill him before he ever got a chance to say anything.

It would be too bad if he died before he got a chance to share any of what he knew. He had done a lot for the rangers and would continue to if she hadn't taken him. What he had the potential to do…. Maybe she was going about this the wrong way. Maybe instead of convincing him to talk to her, she should be convincing him to work for her. If he thought he could live by switching sides, maybe he'd go for it. He could give her information and help her improve in battles so she could take out Kimmie. And if it appeared as though he wasn't fully on her side she wouldn't fool around anymore. She'd simply cut off his head and mail it back to Kimmie and be done with it.

"Cerlina would you like me to continue?" Malizor questioned. He watched as she seemed focused on the center of the wall. She appeared to be seriously contemplating something.

"In a minute." Cerlina replied, spinning around and walking back over toward Billy. "I had a thought. Perhaps we don't need to torture him for information." Her eyes were focused on Billy's as she spoke toward Malizor.

"Would you like me to finish him then?" Malizor asked. Information would be useful, but he felt as though it was best to just get him off their property.

"Not yet." Cerlina said, leaning in a bit closer and speaking to Billy. "I want you to come work for us. Help me destroy your friends and you'll be allowed to live."

Billy glanced up at her before spitting in her face. She wiped it off with the back of her hand while continuing to stare at him. "Wrong answer. You can live a long and useful life working under the future empress of evil."

Malizor glanced over at her. This was the first he'd ever heard of her having any ambitions to rule the universe. He watched as Billy glared at her before the former ranger finally spoke. "I would much rather die than work for you."

"Die?" Cerlina questioned, not used to being refused like this. She wasn't happy at all and she was going to make sure he knew it. Standing up straight she took a step back. "If you refuse me you'll do more than just die. I know how to keep you alive for a long time just so that I can enjoy watching you be slowly and painfully tortured to death."

"I am not going to turn on my friends for you." Billy said with determination. He didn't care, he'd sooner give up his own life than help her kill anyone.

"We'll see." Cerlina said as she gestured toward Malizor. "Why don't you give him a sample of what he has to look forward to."

Malizor nodded and tried a different tactic on the former ranger. He smiled as he watched his captor howl in pain. There was no way that a human could take this much and not give in eventually. He'd be surprised if Cerlina wasn't able to break him quickly.

"That is the kindest you'll be treated throughout your stay here I can promise you." Cerlina said as Malizor backed off. She could see the pain in his eyes. Perhaps he would be inclined to change his mind. "Now we can continue this, or just say the word and we'll end it all now and put you to work."

"Go to hell." Billy spat as he braced himself for the worst Cerlina had to offer. He was disappointed that he missed his chance to settle back down on Earth, to have a life in Angel Grove. He didn't regret his decision to return to Earth though, to help his friends. He'd do it again in a heartbeat even if the outcome was the same.

"Fine." Cerlina said with a frown. "I see we're just going to have to work on you then." She gestured for Malizor to continue on with his work. She was hoping this wouldn't take long. The sooner she had him as her employee, the better.

* * *

Kim stood at the center of the small group of rangers, leaning over maps to make the final calls on where they were going from here. There was no good answer to that question, and unfortunately they didn't have time to think of one. Although they couldn't teleport him, they were still getting a faint read and location on Billy's communicator in the palace. She couldn't imagine that Cerlina would keep him or his communicator had she killed him but there was only one way to find out for sure.

"We'll split up." Kim said as she analyzed the maps. There were two entrances and neither was close enough to Billy's approximate location for her liking. That's why she wanted to go in separately, and the team with the easiest path would get him, alert the others and get out. "I'll go with Jason in this entrance." She said as she pointed to a spot on the map. She didn't want Tommy to go with her in case she had to confront Cerlina. She didn't want him to worry. "And Tommy and Rocky can go in here."

Tommy watched as she pointed to the second entrance. He didn't like the splitting up plan, especially if it meant that he was going without her. But without having eyes on the inside, it was going to be the quickest and most efficient way to attempt to get to Billy. "Then we'll stay silent until we find him, one way or the other." There was no guarantee that Cerlina's forces wouldn't spot them. But if they stayed silent and snuck around their chances were much better.

"And I'll use the comm links in your helmets if something comes up." Karone reminded them. She and Zhane were going to monitor all aspects of the castle. They couldn't see specifics inside, but at the very least they hoped to be able to alert them if there were some sort of major movement going on.

"I don't think Cerlina will expect me to try something." Kim stopped short. She was going to say something this stupid but it simply wasn't appropriate to remind all of them about the danger they were going into. "She won't have her forces looking for us. But if she catches you, if you can't push forward, try to back out. I don't want to lose you all." The only way back to safety was to push out of the palace and teleport. Cerlina's magic was so strong it prevented Kim from using her own teleportation powers within the castle walls.

"What about Billy?" Jason questioned. They were all well aware of the risk they were taking by trying to rescue them. It was stupid to turn back at the first sign of real danger.

"I'll keep going forward no matter what." Kim assured him. She wouldn't, she couldn't leave without knowing if Billy was dead or alive.

"I don't like this." Tommy quickly interjected. Billy was important to him as well, but he couldn't watch Kim die over him.

"Cerlina won't kill me, not immediately anyway. It will take the fun out of her game. She'll hold me hostage until she's let me watch her systematically destroy Earth." Kim replied. The rest of her team looked ready to argue but she continued. "I trust that you all can protect our planet. Which will buy me time to escape."

Rocky shook his head. "I don't know if any of this is such a good idea but…"

As his voice trailed off Karone finished his thought. "But she'll kill him soon if she hasn't already and we don't have enough time to work toward coming up with something better. If we don't move now, then there's no sense in going at all."

"Then let's do it." Jason said firmly. His mind was made up, it had been ever since Kim filled them in on the situation.

"Alright." Kim said, more than ready to get this rescue mission moving. "Let's morph and get up there." Pausing Kim glanced around at her team. She hoped that it wasn't the last time she saw them all together. She pushed back the emotion that was charging to the surface as she smiled. "May the power protect us all."

* * *

The blue and black rangers snuck up toward their designated door. Rocky sucked in a deep breath as he watched Tommy pry the door open. He feared that they would set off some sort of alarm and that Cerlina and her forces would be there before they could get all the way inside. He was anxious as Tommy opened the door and pushed it toward him. He stood back long enough for Tommy to slip inside, then followed him and softly closed the door behind himself.

"You're all in." Karone's voice stated through their helmets. She glanced at her maps before continuing. "Billy's signal still reads from the same area. If you head in that direction you should get to him."

Tommy nodded, silently acknowledging her. He had studied the maps long enough to know what area Billy was being held in, or at least his communicator. He hoped that Kim was right, that Cerlina wasn't expecting them to try anything. If she was it was quite possible that this was a trap. They'd find out soon enough.

The two rangers hugged opposite walls of the corridor they were heading down, both looking out for danger as well as looking for signals that they were changing directions. It was eerily quiet as they marched through the dimly lit areas of Cerlina's palace. They came up to another hallway and Tommy motioned for him to stop. The black ranger peered around the corner looking for unwanted visitors, before motioning for Rocky to go ahead and cut across the hall.

Silently they worked their way through the building, Tommy's mental map guiding the way. Every so often Karone would interject, but she rarely had something important to say. She just wanted to let them know that as far as she could tell things were normal. Of course Tommy still wondered what, exactly, she could tell from their sensors but he left that particular point be.

He and Rocky started maneuvering down a new hallway. If Tommy's mental map was correct, they were about halfway there. They headed down the hall and without warning, a Cryobot popped out of the hallway carrying some boxes. Both rangers froze and prayed it didn't spot them. As the Cryobot started to turn, it suddenly dropped its boxes and took off.

"I think we've been spotted." Rocky hissed as he watched the scene unfold.

"Let's grab him before he can alert Cerlina." Tommy suggested. Whether this was wise or not, he wasn't sure. But if Cerlina knew they were there all bets were off. He and Rocky raced around the corner, following the Cryobot's footsteps. They stopped short as they quickly realized that standing behind him were dozens of other Cryobots working on some sort of project.

Although they wanted to fight, both knew it was better to run so that they could try and hide and still get to Billy. They turned and found themselves face to face with some ugly looking muscular monsters. "Just great." Rocky muttered.

The monsters simply grunted in response. They hadn't been created with intelligence, Cerlina simply had them made to do tasks that required more strength than a Cryobot could muster. They weren't even made to be fighters, but they did know how to pound. And pound they did as they swung quickly at the intruders.

Tommy and Rocky ducked and rolled, finding themselves being forced in the direction they came and suddenly surrounded by Cerlina's forces. The Cryobots were no more difficult than usual to fight but the muscle monsters wouldn't let them continue pushing forward.

"We have to figure out how to destroy them so we can get to Billy." Tommy said as he glanced over at Rocky. There was no way they were getting through with the monsters standing there.

"No!" Karone's voice came through loud and clear. "Kim gave you an order. If you can't push forward, get out."

"We have to push toward Billy. I will not leave here without seeing if he's still alive. What if Kim and Jason"

"Kim and Jason are fine." Karone interrupted Tommy's speech. "They are still pressing forward toward the destination."

"Tommy she's right." Rocky said as he watched another pair of the muscle monsters appear from the shadows. It was too risky to stay around too long to try and destroy them and take the chance that Cerlina hadn't already been alerted and wasn't sending the entire army after them already.

"Dammit." Tommy swore as he realized they were really left with no choice here. "Alright let's fight our way out."

The two rangers turned and maneuvered through the small group of Cryobots that had found their way behind them, fighting so that the Cryobots were pushed out of their way. As soon as they had an opening they made a break for it, running in the direction that they entered. The Cryobots were close behind them but couldn't quite catch up. They broke through the door and Tommy couldn't help but be disgusted with their failure as Karone teleported them back to the Command Center.

* * *

Cerlina stood pouting in front of the former ranger. No amount of torture that she could come up with was sufficient enough to get him to turn to her side. And although she enjoyed torture, the sensible side of her was done playing games.

"I'm through with him." Cerlina said with a sigh.

"Shall I kill him?" Malizor questioned. He was surprised that he hadn't turned already but he was obviously very devoted to his cause. Which meant that he was of no use to them.

"No, I have something else in mind." Cerlina replied. She had one more idea she wanted to try. The last attempt she would spend on him would be to put him under a spell. She was well aware that spells were touchy and didn't always hold their intended targets the way that they should. But she really wanted to tap into his brain and if he wouldn't do it willingly, this was her only other option. She could use him swiftly and if the spell showed any signs of wavering, he was simple enough to kill.

With a grin she stood in front of him. "I'm feeling generous. So I'll give you one more opportunity to join me willingly before I take matters into my own hands."

Billy mustered the strength he had left to laugh at her. Cerlina crossed her arms and an agitated grunt escaped from her lips. "Find Finkus. I'm going to need his knowledge to force our little friend to help."

Malizor nodded, and as he turned to walk out a set of Cryobots came flying into the main room. The demon paused and turned as they approached Cerlina, waiting to hear what they had to say.

One of the Cryobots spoke in a low voice. "We thwarted two rangers trying to break in."

"Rangers?" Cerlina questioned raising an eyebrow. This was interesting. She certainly didn't think they were stupid enough to try and come after Billy. "Was Kimmie with them?"

"The red ranger was not there. Only the blue and black rangers were spotted breaking in." The second Cryobot spoke.

"Kimmie wasn't with them?" Cerlina questioned, suddenly feeling quite giddy as the Cryobots shook their heads no. There was no way she'd send her friends after Billy without coming herself. Which means they probably split up and she had come in the only other entrance. This meant she could have a little fun.

She turned toward Malizor and grinned. "Forget turning Willie. Find out which direction the blue and black rangers came from, then take a team toward the other entrance." She paused as she continued to think about what she wanted him to do. "Any other rangers make them disappear. I don't care if they're dead or if they run for their lives, I just want them gone. Bring Kimmie to me. I'm going to let her watch her friend die."

Malizor nodded before signaling the Cryobots to follow him. Cerlina watched as they walked off discussing the entry point that the other two rangers used. She smiled to herself as they were out of sight. She was disappointed that she wasn't going to be able to use the little ranger geek. But this was going to work out much better.

* * *

It couldn't have been more than ten minutes since Rocky and Tommy had been discovered. But it felt like a lifetime to Kim. She found herself creeping through the castle with an overwhelming sense of dread. There was no doubt that they were operating on borrowed time now. Cerlina would have been informed of the attempted rescue. And she would most certainly assume that there were more rangers spread out for the same purpose. At the very least Cerlina would assume that she was there.

Kim glanced over at Jason, whose shadowy figure stayed alert behind her. He wasn't stupid, his thoughts were following much along the same lines. He knew that his friends had been forced backward, that they had been overwhelmed. He wanted to be ready at the first sign of trouble, to be able to break through enemy lines and make it to Billy, or at least to his signal.

As they got closer toward their destination they started to hear noises. Kim motioned for them to stop and that's when she realized what those noises were. Jason quietly called for his weapons, quickly recognizing the noises as well. They were hearing footsteps. Like it or not, they were getting visitors.

Malizor approached, a small army of Cryobots and muscle monsters in tow. He stopped ten yards from their position, chuckling to himself at the sight of the two morphed rangers, poised and ready for a fight. "Two of you will be no match for us."

"Maybe not. But we're sure as hell going to try." Kim sounded confident in what they were about to do, but she knew well enough that she would most likely be sending Jason back soon. He wouldn't go easily, she knew that, but she hoped he'd listen to her order and take off before Cerlina could kill him.

Weapons raised, they both ran into the fight. Mere seconds passed before they were surrounded by the best Cerlina's palace had to offer. The Cryobots were no different than usual, it was the muscle monsters strength and Malizor's, well, everything, that they had to watch out for. As the fight raged on Kim found herself getting thrown between the stronger enemies without being able to get much of an offence together. A quick glance saw Jason suffering much the same fate.

It was a difficult decision, but she knew it was time to make the call. "Jason get out of here."

"Kim, no!" He exclaimed. He didn't care what she thought, he wasn't going to let her get captured. "I'm not going to leave you here."

"We knew this could happen. You have to get out of here and get back to the others." She said moments before she got hit and found herself against a wall. She ducked out of the way of an oncoming attack and rolled across the floor, standing to see Jason still fighting. "I'm the red and this is an order. Go back to the Command Center."

Jason grunted loudly in response. He didn't care, it was a stupid order and a stupid idea. She would need him with her. But she wasn't about to listen to him and he'd respect her as a red. He knew he'd give the same order in her shoes. Besides, maybe there was a way around it.

Kim watched as Jason backed off, disappearing around the corner. She whipped her head back to the fight and was greeted by Malizor's hand around her throat. "Now it's just us." He said with a smile as his muscle monsters came over and restrained her hands to keep her from attempting to fight back. "Cerlina is eager to see you."

"Good." Kim coughed out, struggling to breathe. Suddenly Kim found herself not wanting to escape. If Cerlina killed Billy, Kim would find a way to break free and fight her until her last breath. Win or die, Cerlina would have no interest on Earth anymore and would spare her friends and family.

Malizor released his grip on her throat and maneuvered behind her, poking her in the back with his sword to encourage her to move as his monsters led her by the arms. They followed the path toward the main room, and as the lights got brighter Kim shook her head as she realized how close to Billy's signal they were. It was a shame they didn't make it.

As they approached the entrance of the room, Kim's eyes immediately went toward the center as her arms were released. Cerlina stood towering above Billy's seated form with a small knife pressed firmly against his throat. Kim wanted nothing more than to attack her but she knew that she couldn't even draw a weapon before Cerlina killed him.

"Nice of you to join us." Cerlina said sweetly. This was going to be an amazing moment.

Kim smirked. "Nice of you to keep my friend alive."

"It wasn't my intention, but I couldn't let his mind go to waste." Cerlina replied with a shrug. "At first anyway. Now he's better to me dead."

She wasn't going to beg for Billy's life. She knew it wouldn't do any good. She worked quickly to come up with any sort of thread she could grasp. "I'll fight you for him."

"As much fun as fighting you would be, Willie's life is non-negotiable. I'm sure they'll be plenty of time to fight after you watch him die." Cerlina wasn't about to chance his escape. One quick flick of the wrist and he'd bleed out in a matter of seconds.

"Don't do it." Kim urged with a growl. "You'll regret it." She wanted her to know that there would be consequences to her actions. She wasn't restrained and if she couldn't save Billy she'd make sure her face was the last Cerlina saw.

Cerlina laughed. It was cute that Kimmie was threatening her but she wasn't in the least bit worried. She pressed her knife against Billy's skin and watched as he started to bleed. This was too easy. But that didn't take any of the fun out of it.

The next few seconds went by in a blur. They were unexpected and unplanned for, and even Kim didn't know what to think. After Cerlina drew blood she moved in for the final strike. She didn't get her opportunity though as she was blasted back by an unexpected visitor.

Jason ran through the doorway, continuing to fire at Cerlina as he went to help Billy. Kim would probably kill him for disobeying a direct order, but he knew she'd need him. He had run back toward the exit at first and the Cryobots assumed they had chased him out. When they stopped following him he doubled back and ran through a different direction to get to Billy. He had made it just in time to see Billy start to bleed and he drew his pistol and fired.

Kim gasped as she saw Jason running in. She certainly wasn't expecting him. There would be time to worry about where he came from later. Wasting no time she ran toward Billy as well and she and Jason each grabbed an arm to help stand him up.

As they tried to walk off, Cerlina was making it to her feet as well. "There's no way out of here you know. You're all going to die." She hissed. She was more than furious. She'd given a direct order to get rid of the ranger yet they let him fire on her. Someone was going to pay for this and she was going to start with her three unwanted guests.

Kim paused. She was right, they'd never make it out the way they came in. Looking around she noticed the giant glass window directly on their left. It would be dangerous. Billy wasn't an active ranger, but as he never transferred the blue ranger coin the power still flowed through him and although it wasn't as strong as when it was active, it would protect him momentarily from the elements. Of course the fall would kill him. But she could get them out before then.

"Trust me." Kim whispered to Jason as she whipped out her pistol and shot the window out. She and Jason pulled Billy along as they took the few steps toward the window. They leaped out as far as they could, and as soon as they were outside the walls a purple light flowed through Kim and they all disappeared.

* * *

Tommy paced the floor of the Command Center. He was worried sick, and with good reason. They hadn't heard anything from Kim or Jason, they had no idea if they were dead or what Billy's fate was. They knew they'd been spotted and that Jason should've been here by now. They also knew Billy was alive at least at some point. There was screaming and yelling after that, but that's all they could make out.

Karone glanced at Tommy. She didn't want to say it yet, but she knew how Cerlina thought, what she would have done. She would have killed Billy and by now was probably doing God only knows what to Kim. She wasn't sure how long she'd let him worry like this before she'd try and get him to step up. He was the ranger with the most experience, he was going to have to pull it together and lead them against Cerlina. There would be a lot to think about.

As she worked on what to say, a purple light filled the area and three figures hit the floor with a thud. "Kim!" Tommy exclaimed, a wave of relief rushing over him as he ran to her side.

"We've got to get him to a med bed." Kim said as she and Jason quickly pulled Billy up.

The other rangers ran into the infirmary and started setting things up. Kim and Jason pulled Billy in and laid him on the bed. Zhane started the tests running as the duo powered down. As things started to calm down Tommy went over and gave his fiancé a hug. "What happened in there?" He asked. He was so grateful that he hadn't lost her. The fear that he'd never see her again was almost too much to bear.

Kim pulled back from Tommy, her fingers lingering on his arms as she spoke. "Jason disobeyed a direct order and saved both mine and Billy's life." She said as she glanced over at one of her oldest friends. She should have suspected he wouldn't listen. He'd never watch them take her away without doing anything. They were like siblings in their youth.

That didn't stop her from giving him a stern look. "Don't ever disobey a red like that." Kim warned.

Jason smiled. Kim sounded serious but the twinkle in her eye gave her away. She was grateful. "I'm sorry it won't happen again."

"Billy is going to be fine." Zhane spoke as all eyes shifted toward him. "The equipment is going to finish running some tests, help him heal, but he'll be fine."

"That's a relief." Tommy said with a sigh. "I'm glad this is all over."

"Yeah. Over." Kim replied. But she knew the truth, even if the others wouldn't admit to it. This would never be over. Not until Cerlina killed everyone or Kim killed her first. They were lucky this time that they didn't lose Billy. She knew that this was merely the first major battle in the war for the lives of her friends and family.


	14. Breaking News

**Disclaimer:** The rangers are Disney's, KSuzie loaned me the names of Kim's family that she created so those belong to her, everyone else is mine.

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"Breaking News"

Billy found himself seated in a café in downtown Angel Grove, drinking cappuccinos and taking advantage of the establishment's wireless internet access. It was quite simple in comparison to the technology he was used to enjoying. But for the moment he was completely satisfied with it.

He had almost died several days ago and that had gotten him thinking about a lot of things. As much as the rangers were his top and only priority he still wanted to take a step back sometimes and relax. He wanted to enjoy life, something that he had started to think about before but he was really thinking about now.

Once his injuries healed, which was rather quickly thanks to his advanced infirmary, he started to pursue the path he had thought about before this fiasco began. It started simply. Make money and get a real place to live in Angel Grove. Making money meant tinkering with his inventions so that they would be more compatible with human technology.

The tinkering part wasn't that difficult. In the last few days he had gotten two of his inventions ready for human use. What was going to take a long time was to start to get the money in. He was working on what he needed to do legally to ensure that the technology was his. Then he was going to present the technology to several corporations to see who was interested. His intent was to accept the offer of the company who made him the best financial offer while still letting him be in control of the rights to his inventions. He had worked hard on these things over the years and he wanted some say in what happened to them.

After all that was said and done, he'd start seeing the financial benefits. Then he could save money and get a house. Or perhaps he'd have enough to find a place of his own, only time would tell. That was step two. From there he'd continue working on his inventions and continue being an asset to the rangers.

But there was more to what he wanted than that. As he was being tortured the thought occurred to him that if he died he'd leave behind lots of material concepts but no physical relationships. He wasn't close to anyone in his life, not even the team. He used to be the best of friends with the rangers he served with. Things had changed, their lives have changed, but he missed their friendships.

The other thing he found himself surprisingly missing was companionship. It had been a long time since he'd had female companionship, and he wasn't even sure he'd count his ex. Humans and Aquatarians had two different concepts of companionship. Of course the differences didn't stop there. Aquatarians were a different race with different needs. It had been alright at the time, he had still enjoyed his relationship with Cestria. But now he found himself wanting to have a relationship with someone of his own species.

It was no secret that Billy had never been that good at starting human relationships, at least those of the female kind. He spent most of his life oblivious to female advances, his nose always in his books. And if somehow he did notice a woman who had noticed him, asking her out was a difficult task. Ask him to build a device that will split human molecules, send them through the air, and reassemble them in a matter of seconds and he can do that with no difficulty. Ask him to ask a pretty girl out on a date and he clams up.

It was certainly something he would have to work on. With a sigh he leaned back in his chair to stretch. He was surprised as he caught a glimpse of a familiar face picking up a cup of coffee. "Jason!" Billy called out to an old friend. He wanted rekindle friendships and that was a good place to start.

Jason looked startled to hear his name called. He froze for a moment before turning toward Billy, smiling as he recognized him and giving him a little wave before walking in his direction. "Hey Billy what's going on?" Jason asked as he sat.

"I'm just enjoying some time outside of my usual confines." Billy replied with a smile. "What brings you here?"

"I needed some caffeine. Desperately." Jason had been sitting in front of his computer working on some responses with his eyes slowly closing. He would never admit to it out loud, but he was getting older and partying with the pretty blonde who had eyed him across the bar until four in the morning did not help his alertness during the day. When he first started his job he could stay out with the girls all night and not be fazed by it. It was starting not to work that way anymore.

"Do you work around here?" Billy asked. He was ashamed to admit it, but he didn't know much about what any of his former friends did for a living, especially not Jason. At the very least he had vague ideas about what the others did to make money but for whatever reason he'd never come across any information on Jason's career choice.

Jason turned and gestured to a building behind him. "I'm over there."

"Isn't that some sort of publishing place?" Billy asked, his curiosity now peaked.

"It's the central hub for a men's magazine." Jason replied casually. He hoped Billy wouldn't probe. He didn't know what he'd say if he did. He had never told anyone he was Arnold, not even any of the other rangers. He wasn't sure if it was a secret to be kept from them or not.

"What do you do there?" Billy questioned. It was nice to be able to find out a little bit about what Jason has been up to. His own life on Aquitar had been no secret to most of the ranger community, now was as good a time as any to start finding out about them.

"Administrative assistant." Jason spoke quickly. He didn't want to lie, at least he didn't think he wanted to lie, but he wasn't sure if he was ready to tell the truth. And that was pretty much what the office thought he did anyway so if he was going to lie it was a good one to tell.

"Oh." Billy said, an odd tone in his voice. Jason did not strike him as the type of person who would make a career out of being someone else's assistant. He seemed much more as someone in charge, someone making his own hours and following his own rules.

Jason gave him a small smile, although he almost felt as though Billy knew he was lying. He had to tell him at some point. But he had already given the lie, and they were sitting in quite the public place, so now wasn't the time. "As me about it sometime when we're somewhere more private and I'll tell you all about my job."

"I will." Billy replied, although none of it made any sense to him. At least they would be able to talk about it later. Which meant he would be able to hang out with Jason later. That was one step toward reconnecting with old friends.

"I hate to run so quickly, but I need to get back to work." Jason said. His life was all about meeting deadlines and he had one coming up in a few hours that he needed to sit down and focus for. "I'll catch up with you later."

"Of course." Billy replied with a smile as he glanced down at his watch. "It is probably best if I return to work as well."

Jason had a confused look for a moment as he tried to figure out where Billy worked. Then he realized he probably meant he was going back to the Command Center. Jason stood and grabbed his coffee and Billy stood as well, scooping up his laptop. Both men headed for the exit with Jason jogging across the street toward his office and Billy heading around the corner into an abandoned alley to teleport himself away.

* * *

Much like she had spent every other moment of the past few days, Cerlina sat pouting in her throne. She had spent her time reviewing every step of her process trying to figure out what went wrong.

The number one reason her plan blew up in her face was also the simplest answer. It was her fault. She had gotten greedy. She had deviated from the plan. She was supposed to capture him and kill him. It would have been a painful death, slow enough to be agonizing but fast enough that Kimmie would have nothing to do but pick up the pieces once she was done with them. But she had wanted to put his brain to use for her own selfish purposes. That was her costly mistake. She left him alive for much too long.

Of course the second reason that her plan was a failure was because the rangers executed a successful rescue attempt. That was what got her the most. That they broke into her palace and outsmarted everyone around her in order to make a fool out of her and rescue Billy.

Cryobots had already been destroyed for allowing the ranger to double back and rescue both Kimmie and Willie. But that was only the first step. She had to take measures to ensure that this would never happen again. The first steps she took were magical. Simply put, she'd installed a better alarm system and put sturdier locks on the doors.

The second thing she did was send out a message throughout the galaxy. The message was simple. She was looking for the most ruthless creatures she could find to join her army. One or two would do to stand in under Malizor. It would give her a few more pairs of smart, reliable hands to take on the rangers. As Willie had been rescued and was most likely helping the rangers again, she needed to take some steps to help herself. They would continue with monster upgrades, but more brute strength on her side would never hurt. She was hoping to have some reliable candidates in her palace shortly.

The entire situation had sent her into quite the funk and after she'd spent the first few hours after the rescue dishing out orders and trying to pull things together into a much better state than they were before, she'd sat in her throne in quite a mood as she contemplated everything. After hours of being left alone she'd finally come to a decision. That this operation was a failure and that there was nothing she could do about it.

So now she was back to square one. How to get rid of the rangers so she can destroy everything near and dear to Kimmie, saving her for last. It was quite obvious that she wasn't going to do that sitting here moping. Although she wasn't sure what she wanted to officially do next, she did know one thing. She didn't want Kimmie to think she has been sitting up here moping. She had left her alone for a few days too many as far as she was concerned. The message that she wanted her to get was that she was up here and furious and ready for revenge. And there was always one good way to send that message.

"Malizor!" she yelled, watching as some of the Cryobots that were lingering outside of the doorway sent word through the palace.

A few minutes later Malizor appeared in front of her. "You needed to see me?" he questioned, thrilled that she was ready to move on. Her anger was warranted, but he was getting worried when she wanted nothing to do with anyone and was voicing no plans for revenge. He had done the few tasks she had asked of him and he hadn't spoken to her since.

"I think it's time to let Kimmie know how upset I am with her." Cerlina said, a grin slowly spreading across her face. "Do you think you can handle that?"

"Would you like me to attack her?" Malizor questioned. Although as much as he wanted to take her down, he doubted he could get her alone without those other rangers coming to her aid. He would have to separate her first.

"Perhaps." Cerlina said as she contemplated it. It wasn't what she had in mind, but she wouldn't completely dismiss adding it to her plan. "First I'd like for you to go see Finkus and tell him to make the most violent, cruel monster he can think of."

"And where shall I have him attack?" Malizor questioned, already liking where this was going.

"I would like him to make a statement." Cerlina said as she thought about it. She just wanted Kimmie to know that she was here, pissed, and working on how to kill her and all of her friends. "Send him somewhere that he'll get noticed. Somewhere that he can terrorize people."

"I will." Malizor replied, giving her a slight bow before swiftly walking away to do her bidding.

* * *

Carri Hillard thumped down the exterior stairs that led away from city hall with her cameraman hot on her heels. She let out a loud groan as she reached the bottom. "That was boring." She said with a sigh.

Randy Devonshire, who had been Carri's faithful cameraman and confidant for as long as she could remember, hit the bottom of the stairs right behind her. "There was politics, an angry public, potential scandal, all the things you dig into and thrive on." He pointed out as they headed back to the van.

"Please I'll get to the bottom of that, piece of cake." Carri said with a wave of her hand. She could tell from the interviews that this story was going to be simpler than most. "You and I both know that this isn't the most interesting thing going on in Angel Grove."

"Revealing the identities of your little obsession would be the story of the century." Randy agreed with her logic, but that was quickly becoming her favorite story and some of her other inquiries had been falling behind. "That is going to take time you know. But in the meantime you can always work on that little favor I asked of you." He had her working on an unmasking of his own that was quite near and dear to his heart.

"I'm working on it. Along with everything else." Carri assured him. "Don't worry I'm going to stay on top of my stories. I didn't make it this far not being able to multi-task."

But Randy knew her well, and she knew that he was aware that the rangers story was quickly becoming her top priority. She couldn't help it, she had been fascinated with them ever since high school.

Angel Grove had been her hometown, and although she had traveled the globe as a reporter it was her favorite place to be. She had been born just on the outskirts of the town to a wealthy producer father and his high society wife. They lived in the town's ritziest neighborhood, which was tucked away in a remote corner of Angel Grove. She went to private schools growing up before being sent several miles outside of the town to a prep school for her high school years.

She lived there year round for the most part, not even able to sneak away to spend time with her cousin when she moved to Angel Grove. They kept her busy with school work and cheerleading and tennis and theater and anything else her mother could insist to the administrators that her daughter become involved in. Some days Carri simply wanted to pull her hair out and scream. She had friends and relationships but nothing that she was thrilled to admit to. She knew the only reason she was there. She had become quite rebellious heading into her teens and her mother finally decided she'd had enough of her. She knew the only way to have some sanity and peace during Carri's teenage years was to send her to the high end school, where she would only be allowed to come home on weekends and holidays. She had justified it to Carri by saying that it would transition her into becoming an adult and get her ready for college life but Carri had seen right through her bullshit.

Freshman year had started off as quite a drag. Until a few months in when the power rangers showed up, defending the earth from all things evil. Carri had been quite enthralled by the rangers, they were making what was an otherwise dull existence rather exciting. She would often convince friends or her older brother to help her sneak off of campus in the afternoons so she could head into town in hopes of seeing some of the action.

She was more than a little interested in who they were in high school but she didn't have the means to find anything out. Now that she was older, and more than a little convinced that some of these rangers were the same hero's from so long ago, she would figure out everything she could about them. After all, digging was her job and she was damn good at it.

As they went to put the equipment away, a figure materialized near the steps of city hall. While the few citizens nearby started to panic and run, Carri grabbed Randy's arm. "Start the camera rolling." She said as she reached over and picked up her mic, "we're going to sneak up on him."

"Out of all the bad ideas you've had, this one is the worst." Randy quickly pointed out, not at all interested on getting that close to the monster. He watched as Carri ducked down and started to sneak in between cars, trying to get as close as she could without being spotted. "Christ." He swore, grabbing the camera before following her.

Carri looked back to see that Randy had the camera on, and staying crouched she started speaking quietly. "This is Carri Hillard, reporting from the scene of a monster attack. The monster just arrived at city hall and the rangers have yet to make it on scene. We are going to bring you an up close and personal look."

"Carri!" Randy hissed in a whisper as she headed closer toward the monster.

"Relax he can't see me." She spoke softly as she yelled back.

Randy scooted closer toward her as she kept scooting up. Within seconds he was feeling rather exposed and had lost sight of the monster. He pointed the camera around before seeing the monsters giant tiger like head poke around Carri's hiding spot and stare at her.

Carri froze like a deer in the headlights before pushing her shoulders back and standing up. "Keep rolling." She hissed in Randy's direction before looking the monster in the eye. "Carri Hillard, Fox news. Can you tell us your name?"

The monster didn't reply, simply glared at the woman standing in front of him. Carri didn't let it bother her as she continued. "So, tiger man, if you won't give us your name would you be willing to tell the viewing public why it is that you've chosen to terrorize our fair city?"

She pointed the microphone into the monsters face, and before she knew what was happening he reached over and grabbed her by the throat. Gasping for air she thought about how Randy was probably right. This just about topped her list of dumb ways to get a story. Although if she somehow survived it was going to be a great piece.

The next few moments for her were a blur. The monster's grip loosened and suddenly he was thrown from her sight. Turning she saw the blue ranger standing next to her. "Thank you blue ranger. Do you have time for an interview?"

Rocky blinked from behind his helmet. Either she was a really good reporter or seriously insane. Whatever the answer, she needed someone to knock some sense into her. After all, this was a monster attack. "I need to defeat that monster. Maybe you should move out of the way."

"Of course." Carri replied in her best professional tone as she gestured for Randy to follow her. They headed back to find a safe spot to continue filming. As they walked she kept glancing back at the blue ranger.

"So now you're going to obsess over the blue one?" Randy asked as they jogged away.

They quickly hid behind a dumpster that Carri considered to be a safe distance. "Obsess? No. He's my hero." She said with a wink and a smile. Randy simply rolled his eyes as he turned his camera back toward the action.

* * *

The battle was no more difficult than any other of Cerlina's creations that they have squared off against. It wasn't long before the monster was defeated and the rangers found themselves teleporting away. The moment they were in the safety of the Command Center, the rangers powered down and Tommy immediately crossed his arms over his chest. "What the hell was she doing?" he asked aloud, knowing no one had any sort of logical answer.

"Getting to the bottom of her story. We both know she's relentless." Kim pointed out. There was never any doubt in Kim's mind that she would continue to try to unravel the truth behind the power rangers.

"What did she say to you?" Tommy asked as he turned toward Rocky. He couldn't believe it when he arrived on the scene to find Carri, microphone in hand and camera rolling, in the clutches of the monster.

Rocky shook his head and smiled to himself as he thought about it. "She wanted an interview."

Tommy swore under his breath as Jason turned toward him. "Is she the one who you were thinking of when you warned us to be careful of reporters?"

"Kim and I had seen how close she'd gotten before. I thought it was wise that we were all aware of the media." Tommy replied.

Jason suppressed a groan. This was the last reporter he wanted digging into the power ranger's backgrounds. She had been a thorn in his side several months ago. She is the only reporter to have almost exposed him. Fortunately she got stumped a few months ago. But he knows from a reliable source that she hasn't quit. She's quite persistent and there was no doubt that she was backtracking and working on a new way to get to his identity. And he wasn't sure what bothered him more, her knowing who Arnold was or her knowing who the rangers were. "Carri Hillard is not the reporter we want digging into our story."

"So you've heard of her?" Tommy asked, although it made sense. Jason lived in Angel Grove and she was a local celebrity. He wouldn't be surprised if the entire town knew of her willingness to get to the bottom of a story.

"Wait." Rocky said suddenly, the reporter's name jogging tidbits of information picked up in high school. "Is that Kat's cousin? The one that lived near Angel Grove that she never got to see?"

"They are one in the same." Tommy confirmed.

Karone sighed. "Well if she's Kat's cousin just have Kat step in. She won't dig into the rangers anymore. Case closed." She doubted there were any other reporters brave enough, or dumb enough depending on how you looked at it, to get that close to the rangers.

"We thought about that." Kim spoke as Karone turned toward her. "Tommy doesn't think she's that close to Kat and I doubt telling someone of her caliber to back off would work."

"Why don't we just tell her who we are and that some of us know Kat and out of respect for her cousin maybe she will stay back." Zhane suggested. He could care less about revealing his identity. The fact that he was the Silver Astro Ranger was no secret to the town of Angel Grove. They had to reveal their identities in the town's defense years ago.

Jason couldn't help but snort. "Let's tell her so we can see it on the six o'clock news." After that he'd tell her he was Arnold, see if she'd keep that a secret simply because he once knew Kat. She did not strike him as the type to put a story on the back burner.

"Jason's right." Tommy quickly agreed with his friend. "For now don't morph or teleport out in the open especially if you are near the scene. Keep your eyes peeled for her when anything ranger related is going on. I don't know what she knows, but let's not give her anything."

Karone nodded as she thought about how Tommy was being a bit overdramatic. There were teams whose identities were no secret to the public. "If people find out, will it really be the end of the world?"

Tommy thought for a moment as to how he wanted to answer her question. "Keeping our identities a secret was one of Zordon's rules, rules that I respect very much." Any team that he had a hand in followed the rules laid down by Zordon all those years ago. For a number of reasons, keeping ones identity a secret was a rule he was very serious about. "Besides it being a rule, revealing who we are would ruin the normal lives that some of us are trying to lead and it would make doing our jobs as rangers quite difficult."

Karone made a face as Zhane looked over at her and shrugged, giving her a slight grin before glancing back to the others. "We'll all be careful. Maybe she'll get bored with us after a while."

"We can only hope." Kim replied with a smile. Although she doubted it, it would certainly be nice. "We should all get back to what we were doing before the attack." She didn't want to keep anyone from their responsibilities any longer than necessary.

A wave of agreement came across the room. One by one the others said their goodbyes and shuffled out, trying to push the day's ranger events behind them as they went on with their normal activities.

* * *

Later that evening, Kim sat curled up on the bed she shared with Tommy as she checked her email. Each one she opened reminded her of how life had changed so much in the past few months. There were emails from her bosses – both of the bosses she for the most part she had abandoned in both Miami and Reefside. She hoped that her job in Reefside would hold out for her until she returned. She couldn't blame them if they didn't but she was more than ready to end this and go back to some sense of normality.

The next email, the one she was working hard to reply to, was from her mother. Her mother wanted to be very hands on in planning the wedding Kim planned on having the following summer. That was why she planned on flying into Angel Grove with the family. What pieces of the family Kim wasn't sure, at the very least she figured she'd see her stepfather Andre and half sister Charlotte.

Her intentions were to get Kim started in the right direction with her wedding and to see Tommy whom she hadn't seen since he was a boy. Tommy hadn't even met her mother's new family, he only knew them from the bits and pieces she had filled him in on.

She had just recently told her mother about her engagement. She wasn't sure what she was going to think. She still wasn't completely sure, but as they were rushing to the west coast she had to assume she supported her. Kim was happy at the prospect of seeing her family. She assumed that her brother would come hang out some while their mom was in town as well. He lived in Stone Canyon and they hadn't really had time to see each other, which was disappointing considering they were living on the same coast for the first time in years.

She was especially glad to see her family as she was constantly worried about them thanks to Cerlina's threats. The good thing about their visit was that should Cerlina decide to attack her mother in the near future, Kim would be close by to save her. She was debating on what to say to her mother, or if to say anything at all. She wanted to warn her to be careful without letting her know she was a ranger. After all, Kim couldn't keep an eye on her when she was in France. She still had a few days to think about what she wanted to do though.

With a sigh Kim sent her mother a reply then shut the computer screen. Jumping off the bed she headed out of the room to find Tommy glued to the television screen. "What's going on?" she asked as she entered the living room and sat down on the couch next to her fiancé.

"We're the headliner." Tommy replied as he gestured toward the anchorwoman that graced the screen. "She's leading into the fight now."

"This is Carri's story?" Kim questioned, leaning forward and resting her head in her hands as the camera cut to a live view of Carri. Tommy ignored the question as the report started.

Both of them watched as the monster attack received five minutes worth of coverage. With the exception of Carri trying to interview the monster, most of it was what they had already seen. When the piece finished running Tommy sighed and clicked the television off. "She was way to close." He wasn't sure if he was more worried about her picking up on their identities or her getting herself killed.

"It was a hell of a piece though." Kim said with a shrug. She was suddenly quite convinced that nothing was going to deter her from reporting this story. They just had to keep her from the truth. "It's the best monster attack report that anyone has ever been able to do."

"That's because no one is stupid enough to get that close." Tommy was quick to point out.

Kim leaned back into the couch as she slid her way toward Tommy, curling up into him while he extended his arm out and wrapped it around her. "We'll just monitor the situation. Let her report and do everything we can on our end to keep her from the truth. I'm not going to worry about it too much right now. We have bigger things to worry about."

"Like what?" Tommy questioned as he glanced down into Kim's eyes.

"Like my mother and family coming to Angel Grove next week to start planning our wedding and to see you." Kim elaborated. Tommy looked at her curiously and she continued. "I just got an email from my mom. They have already booked their plane tickets. I don't suppose she would have taken no for an answer."

"Do you think it's safe?" Tommy questioned as he thought about Cerlina running around.

Kim shrugged. "At least I'm here to watch her instead of her being in Paris."

"I don't know that it will make that much difference." Tommy replied as he continued to think about it. They were close to Billy and Cerlina still kidnapped him from right under their noses.

"Either way she's not safe with Cerlina, so…" Kim let her voice trail off. "It will be good for her to be here anyway. We need a hand with all this wedding stuff. I have no clue where to go from here."

Tommy kissed her on the forehead. "We'll figure it out." He wasn't sure what the timetables for these sorts of things were, but he was pretty sure they still had a while before they had to stress out about it.

"I'm sure we will." Kim replied, looking up at Tommy and locking her eyes with his. She smiled at him and for a moment all the stress of the last week seemed to fade away. She continued to hold his glance as she leaned in toward him until her lips reached his and they found themselves in a passionate embrace.

Suddenly everything was forgotten. Cerlina, Carri, Kim's mother… neither Kim nor Tommy seemed to be able to remember what they had been so worried about. Kim gently pulled away from the kiss. Seconds later Tommy's arms were around her body as he pulled her back toward him kissing her more passionately than before. Within moments Tommy scooped Kim up into his arms, whisking her off into the bedroom so that they both could take a break from worrying about everything and spend some time with each other.


	15. Help Wanted

**Disclaimer:** The ranger characters belong to Disney. The descriptions and names of Kim's family members belong to KSuzie. Everyone else is mine.

Return To Action  
"Help Wanted"

Cerlina walked giddily up and down the line of warriors that had presented themselves to her. She couldn't believe that they'd had such a good turnout. Of course she should have expected it. Anyone in the universe would jump at the chance to come work for her.

She had looked over their resumes as they were. She knew who they all worked for in the past, what major battle's they had fought. They were all qualified, but she didn't consider them all equal. Some of them had actually killed rangers in the past and that pushed them to the top of the list.

As to which of them she was going to chose she didn't know. They all seemed quite obedient. And there were no ass kissers of the bunch. She hated those types. Respect her and do your job. That was what gained her approval. Not the sniveling weasels that spent all their time telling her how wonderful she was all the while not contributing one single idea or winning one fight.

It would simply come down to trial and error. She supposed she could pick any of them to start with and take it from there. She stopped her pacing in the middle of the group of warriors and turned to face them. Giving each one last look over, she chose two. "You and you." She said pointing toward them. "You both work for me now. As for the rest of you, you're dismissed. But stay close. There's still a chance I'll be able to use you in the future."

She watched as all the warriors but the chosen two made their way out of her palace. It pleased her that most of them were disappointed. It meant they were actually looking forward to working with her. Or killing the rangers. Either way was fine by her. As long as they remembered who was in charge.

After the room cleared Malizor approached her. He wished she'd let him have some sort of say in the final choice. After all, he'd be responsible for whoever she picked. But he supposed he'd just have to respect her decision. The two that would work for them seemed well enough, they'd just have to wait and see. As Cerlina turned to acknowledge him he spoke. "What do you want me to do with them?"

"Show them around." Cerlina said as she thought about it for a moment. "Let them in on our little operation."

Malizor gave her a nod. He thought they could probably figure things out on their own but if Cerlina wanted him to hold their hands and walk them through everything he would. "Come." He ordered the two warriors. They stood and Malizor turned, heading for the exit.

"Wait." Cerlina spoke. She waited until Malizor stopped and turned to look at her before she continued. "Once they've seen everything I want you to take them out into the field. Bring some Cryobots with you."

"Yes Cerlina." Malizor replied. That was what he thought was a more valued use of their time. Throw them into the action and see if they'll actually be useful.

"This will be a test. If they can give Kimmie a hard time they're in. If not." Cerlina stopped and shrugged her shoulders. She really didn't care if they failed. It was obvious that there were many more in the wings waiting to take their place. Although she really did hope that they wouldn't disappoint her.

"I understand." Malizor said. If the rangers took them out like they were nothing more than low life lackeys then they would be shipped out quickly. He watched as Cerlina shooed them away. Hopefully this first set of recruits would prove to be a success.

* * *

Rocky stood at the front of the room, winding down what had turned out to be one of the most anxious hours he'd been through in a long time. It started out like any other class. An hour ago the adult beginner's class started, the class that thanks to his sudden growth he had found himself teaching. It seemed as though the class gained one new student at least once a week if not twice.

Today was no exception. A man and a woman joined the class that day. They were together, but he was pretty sure they weren't a couple. He could tell by the way they acted that they were friends or coworkers or both. He hadn't had time before class to say anything to either of them, he was so far behind he'd had to run in and start the class, but he kept an eye on them during warm-ups.

He was trying to figure out if he'd met with them before or if they had signed up with one of his other instructors. The man was definitely not familiar. There was something about the woman though, although he was pretty sure he didn't sign her up. It took him a few minutes to figure it out, probably because she was dressed in a standard karate uniform, wearing no makeup and her hair up in a ponytail.

Although she didn't look very different when he thought about it, he definitely would have recognized the more dolled up version faster. As it was it only took a few minutes for him to realize who the new female in his class was. She was the same female who followed the power rangers around, trying to get their story.

That was when the panic set in and settled for the rest of the hour. Why was she in his beginner's class? Did she figure out he was the blue ranger after he rescued her once? After all there were at least a dozen martial arts schools in the Angel Grove area, she could have chosen to study at any school and she chose his school, his class. The thought that there might be some sort of significance there put a lump in his throat. Could she really be that good? He hoped not. Tommy would kill him. But then again it wasn't his fault.

He ended the class and sat nervously, waiting for her to ambush him with all sorts of power ranger's questions. As the other students filtered out and she hung around chatting, he started to realize she didn't appear to have that much interest in him. Perhaps he was just being paranoid. Either way he needed some answers. It was time to introduce himself to her. She was a new student, he was obliged to anyway.

He headed over to the spot where she and the man she joined with stood. "That was good for your first day." He said as he stepped in front of her.

"Thanks." She replied with a smile. It was awesome, even though it was only her first class. She couldn't wait to absorb everything she could gather. She'd taken some self defense classes in high school, but that was years ago. For the most part those had been enough to get through life. But being attacked by the monster the other day made her realize that if she was going to cover the power ranger's story, she needed to take her skills up to a higher level. That way if, or in her case when, she jumped in harm's way again she'd at least have a fighting chance.

"I'm Rocky DeSantos. This is my school." He said as he gestured around the room. "And for the most part I'll be teaching this class."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Carri Hillard." Carri said as she flashed him a grin. She could certainly get used to him teaching her karate. He was cute. She found herself staring into his eyes as he gave her a smile in return. She couldn't help herself eyes were one of her weak spots. She stopped when Randy cleared his throat and shot her a look. He hated it when she got all flirtatious. Of course it usually meant more to the guys than it did to her. She was becoming pickier when it came to actually following through. She was notorious for choosing guys who were losers or guys who knew exactly who she was and where she came from and wanted to cash in on it, which was something she was trying hard to change.

Randy was past ready to interrupt any moment that Carri might think she was making before she did something impulsive, again."Randy Devonshire." He spoke quickly as he introduced himself. He still couldn't believe he was here. She had dragged him with her saying that next time they found themselves in the middle of a fight they had to be prepared. He didn't plan on getting that close but Carri would never listen to him so he figured he might as well take karate classes with her.

Rocky ignored anything that might have been going on between Randy and Carri and continued on. "You look really familiar. Have we met before?" After he said it he realized he pushed it across more like a pickup line than what it was intended. He wanted to get her started talking about the news so he could make sure she wasn't here for him.

"Everyone thinks they've met me." She said as she smiled at him. "I'm a reporter for Fox news. Mostly local but I've done a lot of national work as well. Randy here is my cameraman. We're California's top team." She said with a wink.

Randy smiled and shook his head as Rocky continued. "That's right. You're the one who was involved in that monster attack, right?"

"That was me." Carri said with a grin. It was always nice when someone remembers one of her pieces, especially the ranger ones as those were her current favorites. "I'm covering the power rangers. It's actually why I'm here. I need to buff up my martial arts skills just in case I find myself in that situation again."

Rocky thought his heart was going to stop beating for a moment. He really thought she was going to say she was there because he knew who he was. Once he thought he could speak again, he continued. "So you chose my school?" he asked as casually as possible.

"You're the best. At least that's what they say." Carri replied. She had done a lot of research before selecting a school. She was going to take classes from the school that came most highly recommended. And she dug anywhere that would help her figure out which school that was.

"Oh, well, that's great." That certainly wasn't the answer Rocky was expecting and he didn't know what to say. He had no idea that there were people out there who would consider him the best. Satisfied she wasn't out to get him, he ended the conversation. "So I'll see you next class?"

"Of course." Carri replied, glancing over at Randy. "We need to get out of here. A reporter's work is never done."

"Good luck with your stories." Rocky said as she headed out of the room, although he wasn't sure he really meant it. He watched them walk outside and head toward the news van before making his way back to his office.

With a sigh he sat down in his seat as things started going through his mind. He didn't really have much time to process it all as his communicator went off. Taking a minute he glanced outside, making damn sure that the news van was long gone before he responded. Satisfied he answered the page and within seconds he was locking his door and closing his blinds before morphing and teleporting to the scene.

* * *

Kim sat in an upscale café in downtown Angel Grove with most of her immediate family. Part of them had flown in from France late the previous night and after resting had decided to meet Kim for a late lunch.

That part of her family consisted of three members. One of which has been blabbing on and on about the wedding Kim was going to have with "that long haired boy from high school". That, of course, was coming from her mother, Molly Williams Hart Gerard. She'd yet to correct her mother's misgivings about Tommy, she figured she'd see him later that night and would figure out how he changed.

It wasn't her mother's fault that she still thought of Tommy as the boy from high school. After all that was the last time she had seen him. Although quite responsible for his age, Tommy was still just a teenager in highs school and he had changed a lot over the years. She hoped seeing him would remove some of her mother's reservations about her marrying the boy she dated in high school. Despite any hesitation about the wedding she may have, her mother still went on and on about what Kim needed to do for this wedding.

Her mother was joined by her stepfather, Andre Gerard. Andre had swept her mother off of her feet while Kim was still in high school, and they got married and moved to France, leaving Kim to live with Aisha's family in Angel Grove. Kim was supposed to join them after the school year in France but convinced them to let her stay as she was becoming swept up into gymnastics.

Kim probably had luck on her side when her mother agreed to let her stay in the states. Her stepsister Charlotte was born not long after her mother and Andre moved to France. Suddenly they were much too busy raising a daughter together to worry too much about what their almost adult daughter was doing. It was alright with Kim, she loved Charlotte despite the fact that she was becoming quite the self-centered eleven year old. That was something she chalked up to being raised in France. Not that France was a bad influence, or even Andre for that matter but things were definitely different for her than when she grew up. Regardless Kim was excited to see that Charlotte made the trip with her mom and Andre.

The fourth member of her family that was there, the one that didn't have to travel as far to join them, was her younger brother Michael. Michael was four years younger than her and had spent most of his life in California, and most of it living with their father. Although Kim often saw her father, Michael was the one who shifted between living at mom's house and living at their dad's, switching schools when their parents got divorced and enrolling in their dad's school district. It had been a new adventure to him. Kim, whose friends and social life revolved around Angel Grove, had decided she would stay parked right there with her mother.

Her reflection on her family was interrupted when her mom stopped talking about what they could do and started to ask Kim direct questions. "Have you chosen your colors yet?" Molly asked her daughter.

"Red." Kim replied simply.

"Red? This coming from a girl who once wore nothing but pink." She couldn't help but be a bit surprised. The Kim she raised couldn't get enough pink. She didn't think that was something she'd grow out of.

Kim shrugged her shoulders. She didn't really have an answer for that one, at least not one her mother would understand. "Pink is just a shade of red." It was the best she could come up with.

"I suppose." Molly replied, shaking her head. "Have you chosen a date yet?"

"Just sometime this summer. End of July, beginning of August." They were leaning toward the last weekend in July but nothing was official. With Cerlina lingering around and other work to be done, the wedding was for the most part slipping through the cracks.

"Have you thought about where you're going to get married? Or have a reception? Or who's going to cater it, take pictures, that sort of thing?" Molly questioned. They had to have thought about these things. They were talking about getting married nine months from now. They should have already picked people and put deposits down as summer wedding schedules fill quickly.

Kim shook her head no. Despite being worried about her family being too close to the center of all the action, Kim was glad they were here. She seriously needed help with the wedding stuff and if her mom was willing to give it, it would save her from having to use a wedding planner.

"Well." Molly stated. She couldn't believe her daughter hadn't looked into anything yet. "It looks as though I have my work cut out for me while I'm here."

"How long are you staying?" Michael questioned. Although it was amusing to listen to all the things his sister hadn't done, he was ready to shift the conversation away from wedding chatter. They'd have plenty of time for that later.

"At least through Thanksgiving." Molly replied. They had decided to stay for the next three weeks. It would be nice to have a real Thanksgiving dinner in the states with all of her children present.

"Thanksgiving?" Kim questioned. They hadn't really discussed it before but she had assumed it was going to be a week visit at most. Not that it wouldn't be helpful to have her mother here for a while. She'd just spend the next three weeks worrying about Cerlina finding her.

"We thought it might be fun." Andre jumped in. In France Andre and Molly had celebrated the holiday as it was something Molly wanted to do. But it was nothing like what Molly was used to and this would be the first time since she lived here that they were going to do a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. "My girls may even come down and see how you celebrate your holiday and visit with you as well."

"Your girls?" Kim questioned, not too thrilled with the idea of spending Thanksgiving with her stepsisters.

"Sophia and Angelique. Gigi may not be able to make it." Andre elaborated.

Kim tried to hide her relief that Gigi may not be there. Gigi, or Genevieve, was six years younger than her but the oldest of her stepsisters. She hated Kim for a lot of things. Most of it stemmed from her suddenly losing her spot as the oldest in the family. That filtered almost everything else, including hating Kim for winning at the summer Pan Globals when competing in the winter games one day had always been her dream. After Kim won things with Gigi spiraled downward and got to the point where Kim simply did not want to deal with Gigi's temper anymore.

Her other two stepsisters, Sophia and Angelique, had their faults like everyone does but Kim didn't have any problems with them. Sophia was not bright and was quite absentminded while Angelique spoke of nothing but her dreams of fame. But she got along well enough with both of them and could handle having them there.

"Great then we can have a big family dinner." Michael said with a grin. It had been a while since it had been anything more than him and his dad for Thanksgiving. Kim hadn't been able to come home most of the time. Of course if they were having dinner with mom it meant that they'd probably end up having two dinners. Dad wouldn't want to spend Thanksgiving with mom and her new family.

"Great." Kim repeated her brother's word. It was yet to be seen if she'd call it that. Before she could inquire further about her mother's plans, her communicator went off. "Work related call. I need to take this."

Without further explanation Kim stood up and slipped out, finding the safest place to hide that she could come up with. Confident no one was watching she answered her communicator and teleported away to the scene of the disturbance.

* * *

Kim was the last of her team to arrive. She was fairly surprised to realize that there was no actual fighting going on yet. It wasn't like they needed to wait for her. Apparently they felt that way as Malizor and the Cryobots were holding still.

"Now that you are all here I would like you to meet some friends of mine." Malizor said. He had waited until Kim got there, mainly because how they handled her would determine whether or not Cerlina wanted to keep them around any longer.

As Malizor spoke two figures teleported down, one on each side of him. Kim took a moment to examine the newcomers. The one on his left was quite odd looking. He had the body of an alligator, complete with a tail and claws, but his head looked like a mutated fox. The other one was less odd, but not by much. He looked like his body could pass for a feline. Except for the fact that the orange color that made up his body was not fur, it had the texture of rhinoceros skin.

"Are these the latest losers to join your squad?" Kim called out. She wasn't sure if it was a good idea to antagonize them. Who knew what kind of powers they held. But regardless they had to let them know they weren't afraid.

"They appreciate the fine art of evil and love killing rangers. Cerlina thought they would be perfect for you." Malizor said before signaling the Cryobots to move in. As the team was swamped with the Cryobots, Malizor and his two accomplices headed in towards the action.

Kim looked up from the battle just in time to see Cerlina's latest recruits making a beeline for her. Quickly she maneuvered around the Cryobots to intercept them. "Come to pick on the red ranger?" she questioned as she stood firmly in front of them.

"No we've come to kill the red ranger." The orange cat spoke in a tone that gave Kim the impression that he was not stable. Not that any villains were, but the way he spoke and the look in his eyes said he was crazier than the usual crowd.

"I'd like to see you try." Kim replied as the duo snarled and headed toward her.

As Kim's battle picked up the others were already going in full swing. They all noticed Kim's two on one fight but just as one of the rangers thought they could break through to help her, the odds changed. Either Malizor stepped in on the battle or more Cryobots appeared out of nowhere.

This bothered Tommy. Why would she be focusing her new hires just on Kim? The more he thought about it the more he thought he could come up with a list of explanations. None of them suited him. It didn't matter why she was doing it; he wasn't going to like it. He fought hard, hoping that maybe he could get away from this portion of the fight and get to her. Finally he destroyed the last Cryobot and was left alone as Malizor was distracted with Zhane.

Maneuvering quickly, Tommy headed up toward the front of the battlefield, where his fiancé was flying through the air and landing not too far from his feet. Not slowing his stride, Tommy went right up to the duo and attacked. Within seconds Kim was at his side and they were each taking on a member of the team.

Slowly more and more Cryobots disappeared for good and the other members of the Sonic Force team started to migrate to the main battle. Eventually everyone, including Malizor was standing up front. The team split up, with Jason and Karone fighting against Malizor, Tommy and Zhane fighting against the alligator fox and Kim and Rocky against the third villain.

It was quickly becoming evident that it didn't matter which of the three one was faced with in battle, they were still going to take quite a beating. Rangers were flying all over the battlefield, hitting the ground before jumping back up and going at it again. It was becoming quite the predictable cycle. Malizor was as difficult as ever and the two new guys were proving to be worthy of fighting against the rangers.

As Kim got thrown back yet again she decided that it the cycle had to stop. She was tired of it and she was sure her friends felt the same as none of them were getting anywhere. As she stood she made the decision not to return to her fight. "Hey guys!" she hollered to her team.

Heads snapped in her direction as the other rangers saw her standing back by herself. No one was quite sure what she was doing, but they all made their way in her direction. "What's going on?" Tommy asked once the team was assembled.

"Let's try something different." Kim said with a smile. "We need the Sonic Cannon now!" she called out as her team moved into formation. If this didn't slow them down she didn't know what would.

As the cannon fell into their hands Malizor smiled at Kim. "Until next time." This was only a test of the new help and he didn't feel like dodging cannon fire. One hit from the cannon could put someone out for a while. They could always return later with a big army and go at it again, next time doing a better job at keeping the rangers separated. As Kim started to give the order to fire, he took his new accomplices and teleported back to Cerlina.

* * *

The rangers gathered after the fight at the Command Center, quite confused at the rather large turnout on Cerlina's side. As they powered down Tommy was the first one to speak. "What do you think this means?" he questioned. It was an open question but he was really looking for Kim's opinion since she knew Cerlina best.

Jason snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "That she's pissed."She was increasing her numbers now that she had lost so badly the last few times. They were just lucky that they were scared of the cannon, or they might still be getting their asses kicked.

"I think Jason is right." Kim agreed. It was somewhat satisfying to know that her team of rangers was making that much of an impression on Cerlina. Of course that meant there were now two more guys they had to find a way around in order to finish Cerlina once and for all. "I just wish we knew who Cerlina's new team members were, what their weaknesses are."

"They're hired muscle." Karone spoke up. She'd recognized them although she doubted they recognized her as a ranger.

"Did they work for Astronema?" Tommy questioned. It would be an amazing coincidence if they did. And it would open up so many possibilities. She would know them and know how to fight them among other things.

"No but our paths crossed when I was Astronema." Karone explained, watching as Tommy's facial expression dropped. "I can tell you who they are. The one that looks like the amphibian fox crossbreed is Cratus. His friend is Rizikar. As for their weaknesses, I'm not sure. But I know who they used to work with, I'm sure I could do some digging."

"Great." Kim replied giving her a nod. "You handle that; let me know what you find out. Anything at this point would be helpful."

Jason nodded in agreement with Kim. He hoped Karone would come up with something useful sooner rather than later. "I don't want to have to fight her three warriors plus a monster blind."

"Me neither but if we have to…" Kim said with a shrug as she allowed her voice to trail off. Zordon always said the power would protect them. If they were ever going to get a scenario to test the power out, that would be it. She really wanted to be a bit more prepared for that but either way she'd take her team out and do everything in her power to win.

"This is part of defeating Cerlina. Which we have to do." Tommy was quick to remind the team. Not that he doubted any of them as rangers, but stressing over what could happen wasn't going to help anybody. They simply had to go out there and do what they did best, regardless of the situation.

"We'll figure it out." Rocky said. At least he hoped they would. They always did. Of course things were a lot harder now than they were in high school. There was a bright side to all of this. "At least we made it through today. We've seen them, we know how they fight. It won't be a surprise anymore."

"Not only did we make it through the day," Zhane jumped in, ready with his own positive point for the day, "but that reporter chick was nowhere to be found today. This is the first time in a while she wasn't hanging around the edge of the action."

Kim smiled. It was always nice when you could pluck a positive out of something. "Perhaps she learned her lesson. Maybe she was filming from far away like everyone else."

"I doubt it." Rocky said as all eyes turned toward him. "She started my beginner's class today. She wants to learn how to fight in case she gets attacked again. She left right before the attack. I doubt she would have been able to make it in time."

"She's in your class?" Tommy questioned, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Rocky who nodded in response. "Are we sure that she didn't already figure something out?"

"That was my first thought too." Rocky confessed with a smile. "It was just the luck of the draw that she picked my school and got put in the class I happen to be teaching. I talked to her for a bit after class. She didn't act like she had any clue who I was."

Tommy let out a sigh as he thought about it. This could be a disaster. What would happen if she stuck around and caught him answering his communicator, or even worse, morphing and teleporting? Of course there was a totally different side to this. If she was as unaware as Rocky assumed she was, this could actually work out in their favor. "So you're going to see her every week?"

"Twice a week." Rocky confirmed.

"And you two talked some, got along ok?" Tommy continued his line of thought.

"I suppose." Rocky replied, quite confused as to where this was going. "Why?"

"You should keep talking to her while she's there for class. You'll obviously have to be careful around her but maybe you can find a way to casually bring up her power rangers pieces every once in a while." Tommy explained his idea. "As stuck on the story as she is, I'm sure she'll talk about it as much as she can. You can get a feel for how close she's getting and let us know if we need to be alarmed."

"I don't know Tommy." Rocky said, reluctant at being the team's spy. If she was as good a reporter as everyone says she is he'd be walking a fine line trying to get information from her without giving up his ranger status. He didn't want to give her any help in tracking down the rangers identities.

Jason shook his head. He didn't like the idea either. He had his own secrets to keep and although the chances were slim, he didn't want her to somehow piece together what he did for a living through her interactions with Rocky. If the connection could be found, she would be the one to do it.

"It's perfect." Tommy quickly replied. This was the only solution that has presented itself since it was obvious that Carri was going to be a problem. And since it was their only solution, he wasn't really going to give Rocky an option; the blue ranger had no choice. "You have to do this for the team."

"Tommy's right." Kim quickly agreed. As much she really didn't want anyone to get too close, this was their best option. "You lucked into the job. You are the only one of us she has any reason to talk to, and as her instructor you are the only one she might casually talk about work with."

"Fine." Rocky grumbled, feeling as though Kim and Tommy had made the decision for him. He still wasn't going to like being the team spy. Hopefully it would be an easy job and she'd never have a clue who she was talking to. Not interested in discussing the topic any longer, Rocky decided it was past time to get back to his office. "I need to head back to the school before any of the instructors notice I'm missing."

"We should probably all get back." Kim spoke. She knew Rocky was still reluctant about it and she didn't blame him. She was well aware that this could easily backfire in the worst way. But for now it was the best option.

There were murmurs of agreement throughout the room before one by one the rangers teleported out of the Command Center leaving Billy alone to do his work.

* * *

Later that evening Kim and Tommy found themselves standing in the lobby of a downtown Angel Grove hotel. They were planning on meeting up with Kim's family and going out through the town of Angel Grove for a little while, ending the night with dinner.

Kim squeezed Tommy's hand and Tommy looked down and smiled at her. "You're not nervous are you?" Kim asked.

"No of course not." Tommy replied with a smile. He was just meeting her stepfather and half sister, it couldn't be too bad. Besides after all he'd been through throughout his ranger career, this would be a piece of cake.

"Hey Kim!" A voice called out from behind them. The two rangers turned to see Kim's younger brother heading their way.

As he neared Kim returned his hello and Tommy extended his hand to greet him. "Hello Michael."

"Hey Tommy." Michael said as he took the older man's outstretched hand. "Long time no see."

Tommy nodded, declining to comment about how he was a pipsqueak last time he saw him. He and Kim had been in high school and Michael was barely coming into his teen years. He shook his head to himself as he thought about all the time that had gone by since.

"You heard from mom yet?" Michael asked, turning his attention toward his sister.

"No. She should be down any minute." Kim replied. She turned her glance back toward the elevator as Michael turned his attention back toward Tommy, the duo starting to make small talk. Although her brother wouldn't admit it, she thought he was kind of excited that she was marrying Tommy. He always liked him when they dated in high school. Of course her brother's initial reaction was surprise. Like her mother, he had no idea that Tommy was back in her life nor did he think that he was even an option. Of course he was a bit more open to the idea than her mother, but she hoped that after tonight her mother would respect Tommy for the man he'd become.

As the chatter continued the elevator doors at the end of the lobby dinged open, and Kim could see her family making their way through them. Slowly the Gerard's headed over to where they were standing. Kim smiled at her mother as she approached them.

"Mom you remember Tommy." She said as she gestured to the man standing next to her.

"Of course." Molly replied as she and Tommy shook hands. She was glad to see that over the years he'd lost the ponytail. Of course that still didn't convinced her that he was no longer the boy she once knew, that he was a man who was ready to take care of her oldest daughter.

"It's good to see you." Tommy said politely as they shook hands. With Michael after ten years they could talk to each other with ease. He hoped it was the same way with her mother.

"And this is my step father Andre." Kim said as she gestured in Andre's direction. Tommy and Andre exchanged hello's before Kim pointed to the female who was standing beside Andre. "And this is my sister Charlotte."

Tommy glanced down at the girl in the middle. She reminded him so much of the young Kim he'd seen in pictures and met when Zedd turned time back. He smiled at her and extended his hand. "Nice to meet you."

Charlotte extended her hand out as well before flashing him a little smile and batting her eyelashes. "Pleasure to meet you too."

Tommy glanced over at Kim. Either his eyes were playing tricks on him or she was flirting with him. Kim simply shrugged in response. It seemed like for the last two years when Kim had seen Charlotte she had been interested in flirting with the older boys. From what she could tell, the extent of what she was doing was flirting and she really didn't understand much about what flirting led to.

"We ready to get out of here?" Michael asked as he glanced around at his family.

Andre nodded. "Let's head out." He said as he put one arm around his wife and started walking.

Charlotte stepped up to Tommy and slid her hand in his, turning him around and forcing him to walk her out. "You're kinda cute." She told him with a grin.

Michael snickered as he and Kim took up the rear. Tommy for the most part didn't find it funny. He let out a sigh as Charlotte led him through the front door. At least her family wouldn't be here forever.


	16. Gathering Intel

Return to Action  
"Gathering Intel"

Billy stood in the Command Center, watching as his silence was interrupted by the return of the Sonic Force team. He looked around at all of them as they powered down from their recent battle. "That was close." He commented. It had been hard to watch his friends take such a beating. He was glad that the tinkering he had done with the cannon had helped.

"Too close." Kim added as she glanced over at Karone. "If it wasn't for you." She didn't finish the sentence. She didn't need to.

Karone shrugged in response. "I just gathered information." She had just done what was necessary. She had promised to track down information and that's what she did. She had gone to hit up any contact she could think of to gather tidbits on Cratus and Rizikar. Of course not all of those contacts wanted to talk to the reformed princess of evil and she'd had to use force on a few occasions and once her morphing powers came into play.

For all her trouble she hadn't really gathered much that was going to be useful in the long run, at least she didn't think so. What she did learn was their fighting styles and a few small points of weakness. No one knew the best way to get rid of them, and if they did they weren't saying. At the very least it had been enough to surprise them today and hold them back while part of the team concentrated on the monster.

"Even though we can't destroy them, the information gathering was still useful. It kept us alive." Tommy pointed out. He knew Karone had hoped to figure out how to take them out of the picture. It was hard enough when it was just Malizor and monsters they had to fight.

"It tamed those idiots so we could destroy the monster." Jason chimed in. Perhaps calling them idiots was inappropriate given their strengths, but at the same they reminded him a lot of having two more Goldar's lurking around. Loyal and strong, but he wasn't sure if they would fare well on their own. Malizor was a different story. He worried more about him than the other two.

"Those idiots are strong and fast and we got lucky. That monster wasn't the most difficult one we've ever seen either, that helped. But we've got our work cut out for us." Kim said. Her mind was whirling. If Cerlina was going to keep upping the ante, she didn't know what it was going to take to continue to follow her lead. Billy was working overtime and she knew they owed him a lot for that. She was pretty sure part of his drive was simply revenge, whether he had thought of it consciously or not.

But she knew they couldn't rely solely on Billy. Cerlina had to be destroyed, and she was going to have to figure out how to do it. If they could get rid of her, Cratus and Rizikar would leave and she had a feeling that Malizor would return to Zarkan. Even if he didn't, she doubted he'd try and face her if she could had the power to get rid of Cerlina. A one on one battle wouldn't be enough, that had been proven as Cerlina had too many powers of her own to counter her with. She'd have to catch her off guard and do something, but the what she was going to do part would take some research.

"What about the other part of the battle?" Zhane questioned as he looked around at his teammates. "The part that almost got herself killed."

Tommy suppressed a groan. "I don't know how to keep her off the battlefield." The her they were referring to was Carri, who had shown up as the battle was escalating in order to get the story. One would think she would have learned her lesson the last time. But no, she got almost smack in the middle of the battle, close enough to the monster to get a really good view of him.

And she was quick to realize that there had been worse things to attack Angel Grove in the past, and when the monster spotted her and backed her and her cameraman into a corner, she once again stood firm and as it made some snide comments when she tried to interview it, she proceeded to mouth off at it. If it hadn't been for Rocky and Karone's last minute interference, she probably would've taken a huge hit. Once the monster was clear, she ducked out of sight and stood her ground.

"Well we'll get another great report tonight." Kim said with a sigh. She didn't know what to do. It wasn't as though Carri was oblivious to the fact that she was putting herself at a huge risk by doing this. At least she didn't think she was oblivious. As rangers they could tell her to back off all they wanted to, but they still had a planet to defend and they certainly couldn't babysit her.

"Have you talked to her?" Tommy questioned, shooting a look in Rocky's direction.

"Well, no… not really." Rocky replied. Today was going to be her fourth official class. And over the course of the last two classes they had talked. Not really about the Power Rangers. He had helped her with some moves and they'd had casual conversation. But he hadn't found himself with the opportunity to launch into the conversation. She'd mentioned it was her favorite story to work on but that was all she'd had time to say.

"I thought you were going to." Tommy said with a sigh. He was supposed to be the one to figure out what she was up to.

"I was, I am, it hasn't been that many classes. We haven't talked much." Rocky quickly defended himself. He didn't realize that he was supposed to go back and interrogate her.

"I know." Tommy said as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Rocky had been uncomfortable with this to begin with, he shouldn't have expected him to run back and drill her. "But she's getting more daring. We need to know what she knows." Tommy paused as he thought for a moment. "And maybe you can convince her that what she's doing is dangerous and stupid."

"Her class starts shortly." Rocky said with a sigh. There was no point having this argument with Tommy, he knew he wasn't going to win. Especially since Kim had said last time that she agreed with him. "I'll talk to her later."

"Let me know what she tells you. We've got enough ranger stuff to worry about we've got to get this situation under control." Tommy spoke quickly. He was relieved that she was getting ready to go to class. After this last attack, perhaps now was a good time to talk some since into her.

"Got it." Rocky said glancing down at his watch. "I need to go so I can get ready for class."

Rocky was the first of the team to teleport out. Jason watched him go before he glanced from Tommy to Kim. He still had serious doubts about him talking to her. "I hope this doesn't come back to bite us in the ass." He said with a sigh before teleporting out as well.

Tommy frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. They were following the best course of action, that was all they could do. Karone spoke, pulling him out of his thoughts. "If it helps any I think talking to her is what we should be doing."

"Me too." Zhane piped up. Maybe spying wasn't the nicest, or safest thing to do but they weren't left with much choice.

Tommy gave them a slight nod, then watched as the duo teleported out as well. He looked toward Kim who sighed and turned her attention toward Billy. "If you can think of anything to help with Cerlina, let me know."

"Of course." Billy replied. He knew he was going to have to exhaust every idea to keep this team on their feet. "Are you both heading out as well?"

"Yeah. I think it's about time to go home." Kim replied. She had enough of her own to worry about. Like her mother.

"Enjoy the rest of your day." Billy said, watching as his two friends teleported away, leaving the Command Center once again silent.

* * *

Carri was antsy as her karate class came to a close. She didn't know why she'd come that day. Well she supposed she did. She kept getting herself into the middle of these battles. After this afternoon she felt as though she really needed to go to class.

Of course she was pumped up when she walked into class. She felt as though she could take on everyone, including her instructor. After all, she had just taken on a monster and lived. Well, perhaps that was a bit of an exaggeration. She did come face to face with a seemingly lamer than usual monster and told it a thing or two before the rangers moved it out of the way.

She realized that no matter how lame the monster seemed to her it still could have, would have killed her. But she was ok and right now that didn't matter. She stood face to face with it and she had another amazing story to edit down for the headlines that night. The ratings for her station on the nights of the monster attacks were soaring. She got the best, most in depth reports on what was going on. She was the only one willing to do what it took. Plus she was doing some great comparison pieces on teams of old and new.

The only downfall to her ranger pieces was that she wasn't diving into some of the other things around Angel Grove as much as she usually would. There were certainly other reporters who could get stories, but as her producer pointed out she was the only one who could get the entire story behind the story, it was what she was famous for. If it weren't for the fact that her stories on the rangers were pulling in such dynamic ratings, he'd probably insist that she broaden her topics. That and the national network wanted to air some of her pieces. Usually they didn't concern themselves with anything she did that was local, but it seemed as though they were just as intrigued with the Power Rangers as southern California was.

She was deep in her thoughts as she gathered her belongings at the end of class, ignoring Randy's grumblings yet again that he didn't know why he was bothering to do this. What she didn't tune out was the voice that called her name. She turned to find Rocky heading toward her. "Hey." She said giving him a smile.

"Hey." Rocky replied, smiling back. Tommy said to talk to her. He wasn't sure how he wanted to get to the point but he was going to talk to her. She was just at an attack this afternoon, maybe he could worm his way in that direction and go from there.

Randy looked from one to the other and simply rolled his eyes. Carri had spent some time after the first class researching him. Randy agreed that he seemed like a decent guy on paper and that he was certainly good looking, but they had signed up for class to learn karate, not for her to pick up dates. But she had determined that he met two out of her three criteria. He was cute and he didn't appear to be a loser. And as he hadn't made any serious advances toward her, she doubted he knew who she was and what she had. But she wasn't sure and it had been a long time since she was interested in someone who met two out of the three so she was contemplating going for it and seeing if he met them all and was worthwhile.

As the silence settled in, Rocky crossed his arms over his chest and watched as she zipped up her bag and put it over her shoulder. "How was your day?" he asked quickly. It was a good enough question to go with and he had to stop her as she looked like she was ready to take off.

"Freaking amazing." She said as she grinned, still thrilled about the story she'd captured. "I've got this story that's going to be fantastic when I'm done with it."

"That's great. What's the story about?" Rocky questioned. He tried not to let the relief show on his face but she had just opened up the door for him.

"The monster attack today. I was reporting right in the center of it. We got a close up of the monster with the pink and blue rangers." Carri said quite satisfied with herself. "It's going to be the hot story on any of the news channels tonight."

Rocky was quite prepared to ask her if she thought that was a little bit dangerous and insane when Randy jumped in. "It's not going to be on tonight if we don't move our butts and get it edited."

Carri sighed and nodded. They were on a time crunch and she wasn't going to get anything done if she spent her time standing here chatting it up with Rocky. "I know. We've got work to do."

"You guys are leaving?" Rocky questioned quickly. This was not good, Tommy was going to kill him. He couldn't just blurt right out and ask her what she knew though. She'd certainly get suspicious.

Carri looked him over. He seemed disappointed that she was leaving. Was he interested in her? She hadn't been sure before. He did like to talk to her a lot more than any of the other students. She was definitely interested in finding out more about him, seeing if maybe they could have something. "If you still want to chat maybe we could over dinner." There. She said it. She'd find out one way or the other.

"Dinner? You mean like a date?" Rocky stammered. That was certainly not what he was expecting. And he wasn't sure what he thought about her dinner proposal.

"Yeah. A date. We can go out after I'm done with work." She replied with a grin. She wasn't sure how he felt about a date. His reaction wasn't quite what she was expecting. Randy glared at her and pointed to his watch and she waved him off.

Rocky sighed. He just got divorced, he didn't want to date. But he had to talk to her. It wasn't like she was someone he wouldn't be interested it. He just wasn't sure. But if he said no he'd have to suffer Tommy's wrath. "Yeah, that sounds good. Just give me a call when you're done."

"Will do." Carri replied with a smile as she gave him a wave and took off. This would be interesting.

"Now can we go get some work done?" Randy questioned as they exited the building.

"I don't appreciate the implication that getting this story done isn't my top priority. It's huge." Carri said looking over at Randy and giving him a look that he had seen enough times he knew he could ignore it. "But I had to set up my celebration afterwards."

Randy snorted and she looked over at him with a wicked grin as he rolled his eyes. They climbed into the van and he started the engine. As they drove away he couldn't help but think that he hoped for her sake that this worked out. She was quite independent and difficult at times and it was hard for her to find a guy to deal with that would put up with her for more than just sex or money. Maybe she could finally find something good.

* * *

Once Cerlina was done with her nonsensical rant, Malizor entered her throne room to see if there was anything that could be done to rectify the situation. They had sent out a solid team and lost and it had been quite embarrassing for him, and she had taken that to a whole new level.

"What would you like me to do?" Malizor asked, hoping she had been thinking of a way to rectify this situation.

"Do? Do?" Cerlina repeated herself as she crossed her arms firmly across her chest and glared at Malizor. "What should we do. I suppose that is the question of the day. It's more difficult that it was when I woke up this morning. Before I realized that Kimmie had done her homework on my new friends. That she could figure out how to deal with them and the monster at the same time. How she came up with ideas so quickly I don't know."

"I believe it was Karone doing the researching." Malizor informed her. He'd heard of the pink ranger out and about around the galaxy. He hadn't been sure what she was up to until today.

"Karone?" Cerlina questioned, raising an eyebrow. "You mean Astronema, princess of evil with aspirations to be queen. I'm glad she turned good on us, that's one less bridge I have to cross on my future quest to be queen." Of course Karone was still Astronema, or at least Astronema was a part of her. If she didn't destroy her she'd love to keep her around long enough to make her bow down at her feet.

"It is likely that Karone knew enough from her days as Astronema to be able to hunt down the necessary information." Malizor supplied as Cerlina huffed.

"It doesn't matter. It's just another way they're trying to thwart me. And I am getting sick and tired of Kimmie. We must get my plan moving in the right direction." It was once so simple, but now it seemed as though everyday it was getting a little more complex. Every time she came up with a new, even more brilliant attack, Kimmie created some sort of counterattack. They were at some sort of stalemate.

If there was one thing she didn't like it was stalemates. She thrived from the win, crushing the enemy and claiming a swift and satisfying victory. This has already taken much too long for her taste, and she was at a loss to find anything up until now that has been satisfying about it. Kimmie had been a thorn in her side since the first day she met her, all the way through their unpleasant reunion on Phaedos and her thwarting her now.

It was too bad she didn't have the power to kill her when she left Dulcea's training. Now that she had the power Kimmie seemed to be coming up with power of her own. She was frustrated and she knew she had to figure something out quickly.

"Perhaps we should go back to the original mission, destroying things Kim loves." Malizor suggested. They had deviated from that knowing that they had a team of rangers in their way. But they could amass such an army now that it was possible they could do what they originally set out to do.

"Yes." Cerlina said as she thought about it for a moment. Perhaps that would work now. Or perhaps that wasn't exactly what she wanted to do. "But not things. Things are just so… unimportant in the big picture. I can bring Kimmie up here and blow her miserable little planet to pieces before I kill her and she'll know the things are gone." She figured it would have the same effect as to do it one at a time. That wasn't the interesting thing anyway.

"So then what would you like for me to do?" Malizor questioned. If she was bypassing the first step in her plan, he couldn't help but wonder what she had in mind.

"Let's start with people. Let's take away something that will really cut her deep." Cerlina said as the wheels started to turn.

"Would you like to start with her family?" Malizor questioned. They were near Kim, they were going to make easy targets.

"No, although she loves her family it would be much more devastating if we took away one of the rangers. Specifically the black ranger." Cerlina replied, getting cheerful as she spoke. "It would devastate her. She wouldn't be able to function properly as the leader of the team. Her lover, one of the core members of her team would be gone. The team would collapse. I could easily take the rest of them out and save her for last."

"How do you propose we handle this?" Malizor questioned. It was a good idea, but he wasn't sure how she'd get to him. Kim would never let her near Tommy and it would be tough to separate him on the battlefield.

"That's simple. I'll poison him." Cerlina replied with a grin. She knew some potions that would work delightfully well as a poison. "I can disguise myself and slip down to the surface. They'll never know what it is until he drops dead."

Malizor nodded as he contemplated her idea. "You can slip it in his beverage?"

"That's the easy part. The poison will be tasteless. And they'll never realize I was there." Out of all the ideas she'd had so far, this was definitely her favorite. It could give her some of that satisfaction she'd been yearning for. Maybe today wasn't going to be such a bad day after all.

* * *

Karone sat across the table from her brother in a crowded restaurant, watching as a waitress walked away to put their orders in. She took a sip of her drink and she smiled at him. "How's Ashley doing?"

"She's doing good. Except for the morning sickness." Andros replied with a slight smile. It was hard to stand by and watch his wife throwing up like that. He wanted to do something for her. The doctor said that was perfectly normal but with the advanced medicine his world had access to, he hadn't really ever seen a pregnant woman throw up like that.

Karone scrunched her nose up. She didn't really want to think about throwing up while waiting for dinner to arrive. It made her glad she wasn't pregnant. Not that she wanted to be. Perhaps one day, but at the moment she was much too busy trying to atone for past sins. Besides, the prime years of her youth she spent dreaming about being the queen of evil, she didn't think that was a good quality in someone looking to raise a child on the side of good. "I'm glad she's doing well. I'll have to come by sometime."

"Any chance the world will be safe by the time my child is born?" Andros questioned. He was partially teasing and partially serious. He hated the thought of his child being born into a town with monster attacks. There was constant danger to civilians, and them being former rangers didn't help any.

Of course when he thought about it he knew that there was never really a time when a world was completely safe. Growing up his friends and family would have sworn up and down that KO-35 was a safe, peaceful colony. But Dark Specter's forces were always looming, even though they were at times completely unaware. Years before Dark Specter's attack that destroyed the colony, Darkonda had taught his family about the dangers in the galaxy. Karone had learned of the dangers. He hoped his child wouldn't grow up to know any of the terror at the hands of evil that his family had been through.

"It's hard to say." Karone replied as she shook her head. "Cerlina keeps upping the ante. She's driven by revenge against Kim and she's a fierce warrior. She won't stop until we stop her."

Andros let out a small sigh. "Well I don't suppose you have a plan already ready." Although he was pretty sure he knew the answer to that. If there was a solid plan they were working on putting into action, his sister wouldn't be sitting there having dinner with him.

"No but I wouldn't worry about it. We'll think of something." What they would think of she wasn't quite sure yet. Billy was always hard at work on new projects. And although she was sure Kim and Tommy were on top of it, perhaps she should start making some serious inquiries about what to do next. Getting rid of Cerlina would be the best baby present she could give her brother. "I'll make sure nothing happens to my little niece."

"Niece?" Andros questioned with a grin. It was much too early to tell the sex of the baby but he was amused by his sister's assumption.

"Of course." Karone replied. She was sure her brother wanted a boy so she continued to jab at him. "Ashley's going to have a girl, who's going to grow up to be a strong leader one day."

"I'm going to have a son." Andros replied firmly. Not that the sex of the baby mattered. He'd love to have a boy, but he really just wanted happy and healthy. "And I'm going to teach him the ways of the universe growing up. He's going to be strong and smart and make a better red than his father. In fact, even Tommy is going to look up to my son."

"Your daughter can be the smart, strong red. Kim's a red." Karone was quick to reply. She knew that Andros didn't have any experience with female rangers until Ashley and Cassie came along. But women were just as good as leading as men.

"That's true." Andros replied with a grin. Truthfully he wasn't sure if he wanted his child to grow up to be a ranger. But considering that all of the adult's in the child's life were, are or will continue to be involved with the rangers he had a feeling his child would be inclined to follow. And he would support his child. "And I'm sure my son would agree that women can be reds too."

Karone simply shook her head at her brother. There was no point arguing. Besides when they found out it was a girl she could revisit the conversation. "Either way you're going to have a beautiful, healthy child who will grow up in their parent's footsteps, living a life of honesty and integrity as they stand firmly for all that is good and pure in this universe."

Andros smiled at his sister as their waitress returned with their dinner plates. He would admit to being nervous about the future, nervous about what was to come for him and his family and the planet they lived on. He was also nervous about whether or not he'd make a good father. Whether he could help his child grow into this strong, wonderful person. Although he'd love his child no matter what, he hoped Karone was right. He couldn't wait to be the proud parent standing behind his child as they stood up for the same things he had started to stand up for all those years ago.

* * *

Rocky found himself seated at a table in a fancy restaurant near Angel Grove Lake, his company being the woman he was sent to spy on. Spying was such an awful thing and he hated to do it. But it was for the good of the team and besides Tommy hadn't given him an option. He was worried though. She could easily find out more from him that he did from her. Plus he wasn't the kind of person to use someone like this.

He felt as though he was misleading her by taking her on a date. She was certainly good looking, that wasn't the issue. It was obvious that she had a strong personality, which was much different from the last woman he was with. And, under different circumstances, it was possible that he would have asked her out on a date himself.

But he wasn't ready to date. His divorce hadn't been final for long. He still had his ex-wife calling him on occasion. He was trying to reorganize his life, not run back into a new relationship. Plus he almost felt as though she was the enemy. She was working hard to expose a secret that he and his friends worked hard to protect. He let out a small sigh. It was a lot to think about.

As their waiter set their drinks down and went to put their orders in, Rocky went ahead and started toward the conversation he needed to get to. It was the reason for the dinner and he wanted to make sure things were said. "So did you get the story edited?"

Carri's face lit up. She was more than a little excited about how the story turned out. "I did. I hope you set your DVR. You wouldn't want to have missed my on the spot report."

"So you were really close to the action?" He knew she had alluded to it before, but he wanted her to flat out say that she was next to the monster.

"Yeah you could say that." She replied giving him a slight grin. "I was on scene and I got close enough to smell the garbage scented breath of the monster of the week."

"Weren't you afraid?" Rocky questioned, hoping that he could convince her to stay back. "I mean, those monsters are kind of dangerous."

"Well." Carri stated with a shrug. Sure there was a little fear. She'd be insane if there wasn't. But there was also a drive to get the story and a confidence in her abilities. Besides, the rangers were on the scene and she knew they wouldn't let anything happen to her. "Probably not as much as I should be." She admitted with a small laugh.

Rocky tried not to lecture her about how stupid it was to get into the middle of a situation that the rangers may or may not be able to diffuse. He took a deep breath and continued on. "Not that your work isn't great, but I have to ask. Why do you put yourself at risk like that?"

"For the story." Carri responded quickly. She had to do it. She was the best and in order to be the best you had to be willing to go where others weren't. "I love what I do, I love being able to be in the middle of things to get the truth. I know that may not justify the not being afraid part. I've lived in this area for most of my life. The monsters and the power rangers were the most interesting parts about my high school years. I mean, you know," she paused as she shrugged, "the power rangers are always there to save the day. That's how it was growing up. I have to believe that I can get the story and they'll protect me."

"And what if they don't?" Rocky questioned. He kind of liked that she thought so highly of them but there was always the possibility that the rangers couldn't be there and that she'd get herself killed.

"I don't know. I guess we're back to the not being afraid as much as I should be part. Whatever happens, happens. Trust me, I'm not suicidal, but I'm not going to put things on the back burner over the what if's." Carri replied. You only have one life to live and she believed you had to live it. How you wanted, not how your mom or anyone else wanted. If happiness was risking her life for a story, she was going to do it.

Rocky sighed. He obviously wasn't going to change her mind on that issue. She seemed as though she understood the risks and she had reasons for doing what she did that she wasn't going to budge on. So he decided to backtrack a bit and see if he could get her discussing the rangers. "So," he paused for a second, "you followed the rangers in high school?"

"Yeah. The prep school my mother forced me to go to was, well I'll be polite and say boring. When Rita came to Earth and the Power Rangers arrived, they sort of saved me from my boring existence. I paid a lot of attention to anything that was going on in town. I always wondered who the rangers were, where they came from. I couldn't figure it out then, but I really think that I have the ability to now." Carri replied. Every time she went to cover a story she'd study the rangers, see if she could pick up on anything, see if she could catch them going in and out of uniform.

"So you are trying to track down their identities?" Rocky asked. He knew the answer but he wanted her to confirm and elaborate.

"Yes and I will find it out eventually." Carri replied with a smile. Nobody could argue with her skills if she could find out the one answer her city had been asking for years.

Rocky tried not to let his discomfort with her statement show as he continued talking. Tommy was going to love her confidence. "Do you have any idea?"

"Sadly no." Carri replied. Although she had done a lot of comparisons between old footage and new footage and she had drawn some conclusions. "I can say with almost one hundred percent certainty that these rangers defended our city when I was in high school. If you analyze the build of the rangers, the fighting styles of the rangers, even the battle cries you can tell that four of the six have definitely been here before. The other two I'm not sure about. But if I could get their identities… to find four of the rangers who were here when I was in high school would be amazing."

"Yeah it would." Although Rocky was outwardly agreeing with her, he really wasn't sure what to think. He was relieved that she didn't have any leads to their identities. But at the same time, she was able to pick out four of them as being rangers that defended the Earth through high school. He didn't know if that should impress him or worry him. Either way, it would probably put Tommy on edge.

As Carri grinned at him, he continued. "Good luck with your story." Rocky said trying his best to sound sincere. "You'll have to let me know if you find out about anything. It sounds fascinating."

"Will do." Carri replied. That was, of course, if this worked out between them. She'd certainly tell him if they were dating, as long as she was sure she could trust him. She'd be damned if she let someone run off to a rival reporter with her information. Everything she knew so far she'd said on her news reports. Even the comparison of the rangers she had touched on before. Although she hadn't gone into detail on TV, she knew if it ended up on another station the viewers would know she spoke of it as a theory first and she would know Rocky blabbed.

"Great." Rocky said as he relaxed a little bit. At least that stressful part of tonight's dinner would be over with. Tommy would be happy that he got the information and left the door open for her to tell him stuff in the future. Now hopefully he could try to do his best to enjoy the rest of the evening.

* * *

Later that evening Tommy and Kim found themselves wandering into a local sports bar. They found a high top table for two and they slid into their seats as people bustled around them. They looked across the table at each other and made eye contact, both of them grinning.

"I am glad my family isn't here permanently." Kim was the first to speak aloud the conclusion that they were both coming to. She loved her family, loved seeing her family. But tonight's dinner, much like every night, her mother was going on and on about their wedding. And while she appreciated the help, it was starting to drive the both of them crazy.

"You can say that again." Tommy said with a laugh. Although her mother was probably the only reason wedding plans were seriously moving forward as he and Kim hadn't had the time to talk about it as much as they'd like. Despite his appreciation for her help, they had still felt the need to come to the bar and have a drink by themselves after dinner.

"Although she is helping and after the holiday's it will go back to just being me and you." Kim said as she reached across the table and placed her hand on top of her fiancé's.

Tommy turned his hand around, letting hers fall into his palm as he gave it a squeeze. "I wouldn't want it any other way." Hopefully soon it would be just the two of them at his home in Reefside. He desperately wanted to get rid of Cerlina so they could go on living their lives.

They leaned back in their chairs as a waitress approached to get their drinks. Kim ordered her usual beer while Tommy elected to try the new beer he'd seen advertised in the window. "Something different?" Kim questioned with a smile.

"Why not." Tommy replied, watching as the waitress headed back to the crowded bar.

He wasn't the only one with an eye glued to the waitress. Sitting on a barstool in the corner was a blonde who was dressed like she was there to have a good time. Tommy caught a glimpse of the blonde as the waitress walked around the bar to get their drinks but he didn't pay her much attention.

Perhaps if he had looked a little harder he would have noticed that her face was vaguely familiar. Perhaps he would have even realized that she had striking similarities to Cerlina. As it was, he went back to his conversation with Kim and Cerlina went unrecognized. Which was perfectly fine with her, it was a whole lot easier to poison someone when they didn't know you were there.

Cerlina watched as the waitress poured the drinks and set them on the end of the bar next to her. She wiped the dribbling beer off the sides of the glasses before wiping her hands on the towel. As she turned to put the towel down, a man on the other side of the bar that Cerlina had tricked into helping her called the waitresses name.

The waitress walked off for a moment, abandoning the two beers with the intent of coming right back to them. Cerlina was quite pleased with herself. This was going as well as she had planned it. She pulled a small vile out of her purse and quickly assessed which of the two beverages had been the one that Tommy ordered. As smoothly as possible she removed the cork from the vile and dumped its entire contents into the drink.

A few seconds later, the waitress returned and grabbed both beers, taking them over to Kim and Tommy's table. "Here you are." She said as she sat a drink down in front of each of the rangers.

They thanked her as she walked away. Kim glanced over at Tommy's drink, curious as to what the new beer tasted like. Before he could touch the glass, she snuck it away from him and took a sip, the sip quickly turning into a gulp. "This is really good."

Tommy shook his head as he reached across the table and grabbed her beer. "Since you drank half of it it's all yours. I'll order one the second time around." He said as he took a swig of the beer Kim had ordered.

"Sorry." Kim apologized. She hadn't meant to drink more than a taste. But unless they emptied the last keg they had of this particular beer to make Tommy's drink, they'd get him another one.

"No problem." Tommy replied. Of all the things he had in his life that he could get angry over, Kim drinking his beer was certainly not one of them. He'd save his anger for things ranger related.

Kim smiled at him as she took another sip of the beer. Tommy smiled back as Kim launched into as much of a conversation as she could about their battle against Cerlina in a public forum. As the conversation went to the rangers, Cerlina decided to turn away and stop listening. It wasn't like she wasn't interested in the rangers, but she knew there would be no important conversation in the middle of a restaurant.

She sighed as she finished her drink and placed the empty glass on the bar. This had almost gone according to plan. Kimmie had to ruin everything. As usual. Of course the poison would still do some damage to Kimmie, but it wasn't anything like what she would have been gleeful at watching it do to Tommy. With a sigh she stood and headed out, walking right by Tommy and Kim's table unnoticed as she went through the front door before disappearing into the night.


	17. Poison

**Disclaimer:** Power Rangers and all things related belong to Disney. Kim's mom belongs to KSuzie. And everyone else is mine.

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"Poison"

In what was already starting to be a crappy day, Kim found herself morphed and on the scene of their latest battle. She didn't want to be there. She was feeling absolutely awful and wanted to stay at home, curled up on the couch with hot tea, a blanket and a good movie. But she didn't have that option. Cerlina probably knew she was sick and thought it would be fun to attack. At least the morph made her feel a little better. It was nice, even if it was only an illusion.

She did a quick survey of the battlefield. It wasn't too bad. There were a dozen or so Cryobots who were being led by Malizor. Rizikar was there as well but there was no sign of Cratus. She had yet to decide if that was good or bad. Either way, it was time to fight. "What, you guys haven't gotten tired of losing yet?" She spoke as loud as she could, but she had a feeling that the others picked up on her voice wavering. Damn cold.

Malizor immediately noticed her voice and realized what it was most likely a sign of. Cerlina would be pleased. "The tables are about to turn red ranger." He said, quite amused that Kim had no idea exactly how true that was.

"We'll see." Kim replied, calling on her weapons and watching as her team did the same.

Malizor didn't give them much time to organize as he quickly charged in, followed closely by Rizikar and the Cryobots. He immediately went for Kim, engaging her in battle.

Tommy watched as the action started. Rocky and Zhane were attacked head on by Rizikar. It was a hard battle, but they seemed to be handling themselves well. Jason and Karone were going through the Cryobots and he was about to go join them when he caught Kim out of the corner of his eye. Malizor was a tough opponent as usual, but she wasn't keeping up with him like she normally did. She was slower and more sluggish, and he imagined that it stemmed from her being sick. Mind made up, he ran over to join her.

For the most part Malizor was happy with the way this battle was going. Even if they lost, which he suspected they would since they were short one warrior and a monster, he was learning something very vital. Kim was sick. It wasn't easy for her to succumb to the common cold, and the most logical conclusion was that it was the virus taking its course. "Cerlina will win and destroy your pathetic little planet."

"Not today." Kim snapped as she and Tommy hit Malizor full on, watching as he fell back and hit the ground. As he fell she paused to cough, taking a deep breath before running back into battle with him.

Tommy paused before joining her, as out of the corner of his eye he caught Carri and her cameraman. He cursed under his breath before quickly looking away from her. It appeared as though no one else saw her, and he wanted to keep it that way. With a loud battle cry, he gripped his weapon tighter and ran behind Kim back into the battle.

Aside from the evidence in her voice, the other rangers hadn't had time to pay attention to the fact that Kim was sick. They were too busy with the members of Cerlina's crew that they were trying to dispose of. Jason and Karone were finding their task to be the easier of the ones the rangers were faced with.

The Cryobots were no more difficult than usual. With a little tag team work, they were finding their numbers dwindling quickly. Jason and Karone stood together as four Cryobots remained in front of them. "How about I take the two on the left, you take the two on the right." Jason said cockily as he eyed them down.

"Easy enough." Karone replied. She couldn't help but wonder what was going on as she ran to attack her assigned Cryobots. After almost winning the last time, Cratus was unaccounted for. To her it was logical to send out more forces, not less to ensure the victory. Putting that thought aside, she quickly wiped the floor with the remaining two Cryobots.

Seeing as Jason was done as well, Karone moved on to the next battle, joining Rocky and Zhane against Rizikar while Jason went to help with Malizor. The fight went on with the rangers hitting the evil doers with everything they had in their individual possession. A few minutes into it, Kim called for the team to regroup.

As she called for the cannon, Malizor realized that this battle was a lost cause. Not wanting to fool with dodging the blasts from the cannon, he took off with Rizikar following behind him.

The cannon fell into the rangers hands and Kim sighed before dismissing the weapon. "I guess they weren't ready for us today." She said, thankful that this battle hadn't been that difficult. "Let's get back to the Command Center."

In flashes of multi-colored light, the rangers were gone.

* * *

The rangers arrived at the Command Center and powered down. All eyes were immediately turned toward Kim as she went into a coughing spell. Tommy rushed toward her side and put his arm around her. "Are you alright?" It had been evident the last few days that she wasn't feeling well. Even on the battlefield she wasn't her usual sharp self. Fortunately morphing had tamed most of her symptoms but they were back full force now.

The coughing slowed down and Kim worked to take a deep breath. "I'm fine Tommy, it's just a cold." The hacking, trouble breathing, runny nose and slight fever were all symptoms of the junk that got passed around during the year.

"Kim you look awful." Jason pointed out. Awful was an understatement. She looked like death warmed over.

"What you've never been sick before?" Kim questioned as the coughing started back up.

"Allow me to check her out." Billy said as he walked up over toward the red ranger and motioned for her to come with him. The others followed as Billy went into the infirmary, laying her down on a medical bed and starting a complete scan.

"This really isn't necessary." Kim protested. She just wanted to go home and go to bed, not be fussed over by her friends and teammates. She sighed as one of the machines pricked her, taking a small sample of blood for a more in depth analysis.

"You need to know what it is so you can get better. You're not doing yourself or your team any good by staying in that position." Karone pointed out. Leaders had to be strong and couldn't show any signs of weakness. If Kim was sick, she'd need to step down or else they were risking Cerlina trying to take advantage.

Kim was about to protest as the machine beeped and Billy went to read the official results. Billy frowned. The results weren't bad, but there was something off about them. He just couldn't quite put his finger on it. For the moment though, he'd read the results at face value. "It appears as though you have the flu."

"See I told you." Kim said, pushing her way out of the machine as some of the other rangers took a step back. Kim sneezed and watched as the rangers inched back even further. "It's probably too late for all of you." She said with a wicked grin. "I've exposed you all already."

"She is correct." Billy replied as the rest of the team groaned. "However I can give you drugs which will inhibit the disease." Billy walked off quickly to get medicine together, leaving the others in the infirmary.

"Thanks a lot Kim." Jason said shaking his head at their leader. Kim shot him a look and he gave her a lopsided grin. "At least Billy can keep us from looking like you."

"Ha ha." Kim said dryly. Although she really didn't want her teammates to get as sick as she was. It was bad enough that one member of their ranger squad was down for the count. She was going to add something when she started back in on the coughing fits.

As the coughing continued, Billy returned placing five syringes on a counter while walking one over to Kim. "This is an advanced off world flu medicine. It should help you to feel better." He said as he stuck a needle in her arm.

"Ow." Kim said as she made a face, watching the syringe as its fluid entered into her body. "How long is it going to take?"

"It may be a while before you start feeling the effects. In the meantime you should go home and get some rest." Billy said. The best thing for her to do would be to lie in bed until this bug worked its way out of her system.

"I will. After we're done here." She promised as she gestured around at her teammates.

"Don't worry about this. I'll take care of it. You go home and get some sleep." Tommy spoke firmly. He tried to make it sound like a suggestion, but it was really an order. Besides the fact that he didn't like to see his fiancé sick, Karone was right, she wasn't doing anyone any good here.

Kim didn't appreciate the no-nonsense leader tone he was using with her. But he was right. She felt like crap and it was probably a good idea to go to bed. Besides, he'd fill her in if she missed anything important. "Fine." She said as she stood. "You guys know where to find me if you need me." She said as she teleported out.

Once Kim was gone Billy went to grab the rest of the syringe's and start giving the other members of the team shots. As he did so, Tommy went to address his teammates. "Until Kim gets better, I'm in charge." He said sternly, watching as everyone's faces showed that they acknowledged him. "She doesn't need to be worrying about Cerlina right now, or fighting for that matter, so unless it's an absolute emergency we are going to let her get better."

"I agree." Karone spoke up, although the issue wasn't really up for debate.

"Before we disperse, let's make sure there's nothing we need to cover." Tommy said as he shot Rocky a look. Rocky's girlfriend, or whatever she was, had managed to find herself a nice little hiding place in the middle of the action. She was lucky that he was the only one who saw her. If he put aside the fact that he didn't want her working on the story, he wasn't sure if she should be commended for her bravery or lectured for her stupidity.

"I don't have anything new." Rocky spoke quickly, realizing immediately what Tommy was hinting toward. He had gone out on a few more dates with Carri, but so far she didn't have anything else to say about the rangers.

Tommy gave him a nod. At least he was comfortable that Rocky was really trying. He was dating the girl, which was far beyond anything Tommy had asked him to do. Tommy didn't think Rocky was really comfortable with the situation and he didn't blame him. But at the very least he had managed to bring back some information almost two weeks ago. Rocky had provided him with enough assurance that she wasn't sure who they were. Plus he'd gotten an in to get more information as it presented itself. Whether or not it was the right thing to be doing, he had done a good job.

"Any thoughts on the battle?" Tommy questioned as Billy approached to stick him with a needle. Although he didn't have anything battle related to talk about, it was worth mentioning.

"It was odd that Cratus was missing." Zhane piped up. He had thought that now that Cerlina had formidable forces, she'd hit them with everything she had during every battle.

"Maybe she fired him." Jason said. That had been his first thought. After all, they had kicked his ass good the last time.

Tommy nodded, agreeing with Jason's idea. The curiosity about Cratus had crossed his mind as well, and fired was the best answer he could come up with. "I don't think that it's something to worry about yet. I am inclined to agree with Jason, but that doesn't mean that we should let our guard drop."

He allowed the silence to fall over the team as Billy gave Karone the final injection. Once they were all armed with the flu virus, Tommy spoke. "Unless anyone has anything else to add, I think now is a good time to call it a day."

No one spoke up, and satisfied that they were done the rangers said their goodbyes before one by one teleporting away from the Command Center.

* * *

Cerlina sat in her throne room, dissatisfied once again. She watched as Malizor approached her before sitting straight up in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest. "Another failed battle." She said with a sigh. She wasn't sure what she expected from this battle. She was short one warrior and had declined to send down a monster.

"Had Cratus been there we would have had a better chance at success." Malizor quickly pointed out. At the very least Cratus would have divided the rangers attention more, leaving them hardly anyone to deal with the Cryobots.

With a wave of her hand, Cerlina ignored his excuse. She was aware that an extra pair of hands would be nice, but that didn't mean she wanted him to point it out to her. "He's serving his purpose."

His purpose was to find out a way to dispose of Kimmie once the poison hit her full on. She supposed she could have searched for the answers herself, but what fun was it having minions if they didn't do all the boring parts for her. He would do all the research on the best way to make sure Kimmie was dead and she would be able to have the fun in carrying it out.

As much fun as killing Kimmie was going to be, she did realize she was skipping quite a few steps in her plan. Not only that, but Kimmie wouldn't be able to watch or fight back. It was kind of disappointing. She wanted Kimmie to be well aware that she was destroying everyone and everything she ever cared about. That was all part of the fun.

But an opportunity like this… after a lot of internal debating she realized that she simply could not pass this up. Had Tommy taken the poison like he should have, he'd be dead already and she'd be basking in the glory of her first victory. And quite the victory it would have been. Instead Kimmie stole his drink and unknowingly consumed the poison for him.

Now she was dying on the inside, although much too slowly for Cerlina's taste. She knew her DNA would make her more resilient, but in the end it wouldn't stop the poison. Eventually Kimmie wouldn't be able to hold her own anymore. Best case scenario she could shove a sword through her heart and listen until it thumped its final beats. Worst case scenario she could still use her powers or access some other unheard of, annoying power when faced with death. That was why she sent Cratus out, to make sure they had all their bases covered and had a solid foolproof plan.

Soon Kimmie would be dead and her revenge on Dulcea's little pet would be complete. It did take a little bit of fun out of killing her, knowing that she wasn't going to be at her best. But this had taken too long and she was past ready to bring the conflict to a close. There were other parts in the universe that could use her touch, much more than this pathetic little third-world planet.

That wasn't going to stop her from destroying Earth before she left. She'd spent too much time on this to end with simply killing Kimmie. It shouldn't take too much effort on her part. Once Kimmie, the red ranger and the only one who could even fathom an idea as to how to stop her, was gone the rest of the planet should fall like dominos.

Cerlina snapped her attention back into the moment as Malizor continued on their conversation. "Yes of course." He replied. He was hoping that what Cratus was doing wasn't necessary. How hard could it be to kill one deathly ill female?

"How's Kimmie doing?" Cerlina questioned. She hoped that "looks like death" was the response, but she had just participated in a battle.

"It is evident that she is feeling ill." Malizor replied. She had broadcasted the signals to him. Slower than usual movement, not as powerful of a voice, and the slightest hint of a cough.

"Good." Cerlina replied as a smile spread across her face. "Poor Kimmie probably thinks she's been affected by the common cold. What the delightful surprise when she realizes she's wrong." Delightful for Cerlina at any rate.

"We will keep watch over the red ranger. Hopefully soon she will succumb to the effects of the poison." Malizor wasn't sure how to watch her, perhaps keep an eye on her residence. Or continue to attack and when the red ranger is absent it will be evident that the poison is working.

"Do what you deem necessary." Cerlina said. She would continue to sit in her throne room like a cat waiting to pounce. "Just let me know the minute you think her condition has changed." The poison would kill her, but she didn't want to miss the opportunity to end her life herself. Besides it would be her chance to make sure everyone knew who the credit for that piece of work would go to.

"Of course Cerlina." Malizor replied, giving her a slight bow. He was well aware that Cerlina would end his life herself if she wasn't kept fully informed on every piece of new information they gathered where Kim was concerned.

Cerlina gave him a nod. "You're free to go." She spoke quickly. He'd want to stay there and discuss with her all afternoon. She was going to be perfectly happy alone with her thoughts, dreaming of all the wicked ways she was going to end Kim's life. She watched as Malizor turned exited the room. Now came the hardest part. Patience. But at least she had her dreams to keep her occupied until she would make it happen.

* * *

Two figures sat in an upscale café in the middle of downtown Angel Grove. Dinner had been fabulous and conversation had flowed freely, and now it was getting close to time to leave the restaurant.

Carri watched intently as the bill came to the table. She moved her hand out to grab it, watching as Rocky snatched it first. He hadn't let her pay for anything yet. Which was a refreshing change of pace. Most dates knew her family's net worth and thought that she had enough cash to cover the bill. "Thank you." Carri spoke, flashing Rocky a smile.

"You're welcome." He replied as he stuck a few bills in the folder. He couldn't help but wonder why she always genuinely went for the bill. A lot of women stared at it as though it were a ticking time bomb. And although he usually appreciated a woman who was willing to voluntarily put money in sometimes, he wasn't giving her a chance. Perhaps it was guilt.

He let out a sigh that she immediately picked up on. "Something wrong?" she questioned. She could tell something important had crossed his mind. She hoped that wasn't an irritation for her not paying because she sure as hell tried.

"No." He replied quickly. She picked up on everything and it drove him nuts. "I've got some stuff going on at work, that's all."

"Oh." She replied, not deciding yet whether or not she believed him. Although worked irked her too sometimes. But lately things have been phenomenal. That afternoon she'd gotten another amazing piece on the rangers that was all over the news that night.

He gave her a smile as he couldn't help but wonder what was going through her mind. He couldn't quite figure her out and that was somewhat intriguing. They'd been on a few dates now and she was fun and interesting and different and he liked that. She was quite refreshing, especially after spending the last few years with Marie.

If the circumstances were different, things might go far between them. He avoided sighing again as he thought about his situation. He was spying on her. He just got out of his marriage and had no inclination of jumping back into the dating game. He was taking one for the team.

He had put himself in an awkward spot and was almost starting to regret it. Lately he had been quite conflicted. He liked her, or he thought he could really like her, but he wasn't ready to like her or anyone for that matter. Besides he felt dirty about using her. He felt like a terrible person, a horrible Catholic and he didn't know what to do.

On one hand he should just end this and walk away. He never wanted to pry information out of her, let alone date her for it. But he was becoming emotionally involved and he couldn't do that. He wanted to kick himself for getting into this situation. But there wasn't much he could do about it. They were having a good time and more importantly he was really having fun and he might as well continue on.

"Shall we get going?" he questioned. He thought about walking around downtown with her for a while. He knew he shouldn't, but he really wanted to continue to spend time with her.

"Sure. Do you have something in mind?" she questioned. She, on the other hand, wasn't the least bit conflicted. The more they went out the more Carri was realizing that Rocky was a genuinely good guy. He was cute and funny and she thought there might actually be a possibility of this thing working out. This was the first time in years she had thought that about a guy. Of course it was too early to tell for sure, but she was excited to see where it was going to go from here.

"Actually I do." Rocky replied. Now it was over. Good idea or not, they were going to continue on their date. He stood up and she did the same. He led her toward the front of the restaurant. Much to his surprise, as they exited they practically tumbled over one of the other rangers.

"Jason, hey, what are you doing here?" Rocky questioned, realizing it was stupid to ask someone what they were doing at a restaurant even as he said it.

"Eating dinner." Jason replied, glancing briefly at him before looking Carri over, who was obviously amused with the question as she grinned and rolled her eyes. She was the last person he wanted to run into. "What are you doing here?"

"Just out on a date." Rocky replied giving him a smile. Jason knew exactly what he was doing out with Carri. Pushing that thought aside, he introduced the two. "Jason this is Carri Hillard. Carri I'd like you to meet Jason Scott."

"Nice meeting you." Carri said, extending a hand as she gave him a once over.

"You too." Jason replied. He thought about it, and he realized that there was no need to worry. She had no clue who Rocky was. It was doubtful she'd figure out anything about him from one meeting.

Before anyone could say anything else, Rocky's phone rang. He glanced down at the caller ID and saw that it was one of his master instructors. "Work call. I'll be right back."

Carri watched as he stepped away from them before turning her attention toward Jason. "So do you guys do karate together?" It was a good assumption. He was built, he had to work out somehow.

"Not anymore. We did in high school." Jason replied. She was nosy. But then again, she was Angel Grove's best reporter. "Why do you do karate together?" he jabbed, knowing damn well what the answer was.

Carri raised an eyebrow. She wasn't used to her questions getting flipped back on her. "We've got a student teacher thing going on. Kinda hot. Makes up for my high school fantasies." She replied with a sly grin.

He rolled his eyes and she was aware that he knew that for the most part she was full of shit. In fact as far as Jason knew, there wasn't anything remotely hot about their relationship. But now he was curious and he pushed the conversation on. "What, does Rocky have some sort of Britney Spears school girl fantasy?"

"Wouldn't you like to know." Carri replied as she smugly crossed her arms over her chest. He knew she was full of shit and he was still playing with her. She couldn't help but be intrigued.

Jason had a sharp comeback sitting on the tip of his tongue but it was left unsaid as Rocky returned to the conversation. "Sorry about that." Rocky quickly apologized. It was an easy conversation. Sometimes the most trivial of matters could work someone into a tizzy.

"It's ok." Carri replied. She was now quite curious about his friend in the non sexual sort of way. But that would have to be saved until later. "You ready to go."

"Yeah let's get out of here." Rocky said as he touched her arm and guided her off.

Carri turned back in Jason's direction. "Nice meeting you." She called toward him.

"You too." Jason replied, watching them walk away before entering the restaurant. She was still the enemy. But he would have to admit, he was definitely curious to find out more about her.

* * *

Kim lay in her bed wondering when Billy's concoction was finally going to kick in. She was sick and tired and desperately wanted to start feeling better. The big red numbers on the clock next to her read eight thirty pm, and she knew that meant she had been tossing and turning for hours, trying to rest but spending most of the time sneezing and hacking away.

Her mother had arrived shortly after she had been dismissed from the Command Center. She had called and immediately realized that her eldest daughter was under the weather. In a motherly fashion, she had rushed over and provided soup and hot tea, both of which were sitting cold and barely touched on the nightstand.

She had fussed over her and sat with her for a while, petting her head like she did when she was younger. She had even taken her temperature and fretted over the results until Tommy came home and assured her that Kim had been to the doctor and that the medicine she had been given would kick in any time now.

That was a few hours ago. Since then both have stayed in the living room, each of them coming in to check on her every so often. She usually pretended to be asleep, not wanting anyone to baby her. But she could tell more of what was going on than they realized. Her mother would sigh and stare at her while she was supposedly sleeping. Her mother was troubled, and Kim assumed she felt horrible that her daughter was so sick and there was nothing she could do for her.

Tommy on the other hand would come in and pace the room, getting close to her at times. When he was done with his pacing he'd usually lean against the furniture, arms crossed and the look on his face that she'd seen many times since Cerlina came to town. It was the look of a troubled leader, one who knew there was a serious problem on his hands that needed his immediate attention.

Assuming he didn't know something about her condition that she wasn't made aware of, he had to be worried that it had been so long and she was looking worse, not better. One of the things that had been almost a certainty in her life is that when Billy found a problem and presented a solution, the solution worked. And it was never this slow going. With the advanced alien technology they had access to, their solutions were usually close to immediate. Even if she wasn't one hundred percent by now, she was well aware that she should at least be seeing some signs of improvement.

She was trying her hardest not to dwell on it. Perhaps this was a different virus strand that was going to take longer to react. Or maybe it was working. Sometimes you had to get worse to get better. She let out a small sigh as she thought about it. She didn't want to admit it out loud yet, but in her heart she knew something was wrong. She just couldn't quite figure out what it was.

As she shifted in her bed, her stomach lurched. She curled up into a little ball, begging the inevitable not to happen. She hadn't eaten all day, she didn't even know what was down there to expel. But these things never gave anyone a choice, and once her stomach lurched again she flew out of the bed and into the bathroom, barley getting the seat up before dumping the contents of her stomach.

Just as she had suspected there wasn't much there and her chest ached from the miserable experience. She didn't move, she felt the urge coming on again. As a hand rubbed her back she threw up once more. The second time was worse than the first and she said a little prayer when it was over. The feeling subsided and she leaned back, giving her visitor a weak smile. "After the last time I swore I'd never let you find me like this again."

The thought of a drunken Kim throwing up in his bathroom in Vegas brought a brief smile to Tommy's face, one that was wiped away by the terrible state of his fiancé. "Come on, let's get you up."

Kim nodded and allowed Tommy to help her to her feet. She stepped toward the sink, quickly turning the water on and rinsing her face. As she dried her hands off with a towel, she looked over at Tommy. "I need to get a glass of water."

"Why don't you go lay down, I'll get it." He suggested. Kim didn't look like she needed anything but rest, and he was seriously doubting the effectiveness of Billy's cure.

"No." Kim said. The word was soft but firm. She was tired of laying in bed, she just wanted to walk out of the room even if it was only for a few minutes. "I'll get it. I'm tired of staring at the same four walls."

"Fine. Let me help you." Tommy said, wondering how much of the time she spent in her room actually sleeping and how much she was pretending. He put his arm around her and escorted her out of the bathroom and through the bedroom. Her mother shot him a look as they passed her in the living room.

"Kim, honey, what are you doing up?" she asked, praying that the answer was that she was feeling better. Although with the commotion from the bathroom she knew that wasn't the case.

"I'm getting a glass of water. I needed to get out of there." Kim spoke quickly. She gestured for Tommy to let her go and he did so, going to sit on the couch with his eyes firmly glued on her. Heading into the kitchen she grabbed a glass, filling it with ice first and then water.

She took a huge gulp and the thought occurred to her that she didn't know that water could taste so good. Walking back out into the living room, glass in hand she forced a smile toward her mother and Tommy. "I've got to get worse to get better right?"

"Maybe you should go see another doctor." Her mother suggested. Her daughter was getting a lot worse, not better, and she couldn't help but wonder what kind of quack she saw in the first place. "Perhaps get a second opinion, maybe get some stronger medicine."

"No mom that won't be." Kim stopped short. The weirdest feeling took over her. She was aware that her body was starting to shake but she couldn't do anything about it. She felt the glass fly out of her hand, heard it break as it smashed the wall and felt the water hit her in the back. The shakes got more violent and she stole one last glance at Tommy before falling unconscious to the floor.

"Call nine one one!" her mother exclaimed, jumping up off the couch.

"No." Tommy spoke quickly. He had a bad feeling that this was ranger related and that no hospital could help her. He prayed he was mistaken but he wasn't taking any chances. "I can get her to the hospital faster." He lied as he ran over and scooped her unconscious body into his arms. Snatching his keys off the counter he ran them both out to his jeep.

Molly Gerard watched helplessly as Tommy flew out into the parking lot and threw Kim into his jeep. He wouldn't even give her the chance to come with him as he started the engine and flew out of the parking lot. She didn't understand, they should have called for an ambulance. He should have taken her with them. She was worried to death and there were too many thoughts flowing through her mind about what should have been done and what might happen. She crossed her arms as a tear slid down her face.

The tear wasn't missed by Tommy, who'd given her a brief glance as he pulled away. She'd probably hate him forever for this, but it was the only way to get her to the Command Center without Molly realizing what was going on. As soon as he was clear of the apartments he pulled into the most remote place he could find. Cutting the engine off he ran to the passenger's side, pulling her out of the seat and into his arms before teleporting them both up.


	18. Race for a Cure

**Disclaimer: **The rangers and all things related are Disney's. Everyone else is mine.

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"Race for a Cure"

Tommy materialized in the Command Center, the red ranger's limp body pulled close to his chest. He was panicking. He never panicked; he was Tommy Oliver, the ranger that was known for his tough, no nonsense leadership. He wasn't supposed to panic.

This was different though, Kim's life was at stake. Kim, the woman who he'd loved and lost, only to be lucky enough to love again. The woman who had agreed to marry him and was going to make him the happiest man on the planet. Now she was lying in his arms, and he could almost feel her life force slipping away. This wasn't supposed to happen. This couldn't happen, he wouldn't let it. He'd do anything for her.

With a quick glance around the main room he realized Billy was nowhere to be found. Finding him was the first step. If anyone could cure her it was Billy. He headed off toward the infirmary when he heard the former blue ranger call his name from across the room.

Billy had been surprised to walk in and find Tommy there. He was even more surprised when Tommy turned, showing the unconscious ranger in his arms. "What happened?" Billy questioned rushing toward them. His first thought was that he had missed an attack and that worried him. His alarms should have gone off had there been an attack.

"I… I don't know." Tommy stammered, not at all like his usual red ranger self. "She was getting worse. And then she collapsed. She shouldn't be like this. I mean the flu doesn't." Tommy stopped short, not knowing what else to say.

"Let's get her in here." Billy said. He silently agreed with Tommy, something was seriously wrong. But he wouldn't say that out loud, the man was already a mess. He led Tommy into the infirmary and gestured for him to put her on a table. "I need to know what happened since she left here." He said as he worked on hooking her up to the machines.

"She slept all day. She was still running a high fever." Tommy said as he paused to think about it. "She looked worse. At some point she got up to throw up and she wanted to go get her own glass of water. I let her… God I hope this wasn't my fault." He should have made her go back to bed and gone and gotten the water for her. What if she got so sick from standing so long?

"Is that all?" Billy asked calmly, watching as the machine started to take readings.

"She was standing up with the glass of water when she got violent shakes. That's when she fainted and I rushed her here." Tommy finished his train of thought.

Billy gave him a slight nod. "Thank you." He said as he glanced at Tommy. He hadn't really needed all the details. He supposed it was good to know, but the machines would do most of the work. He was really trying to get Tommy to pull together and focus. If this was some sort of attack he was going to need to lead the team. For the most part, Tommy did look a little better.

"Can it tell anything?" Tommy questioned, watching as numbers started popping up on the machine.

"This is just a preliminary scan." Billy replied. It told him that she had a high fever and that there was an anomaly in her blood work, but he'd need to run some individual in depth scans to figure out what was wrong with her. As he glanced at her blood work he got the same feeling he had gotten earlier in the day.

Something was off earlier and he should have pursued it further, run a multitude of tests. But he'd let it slide. It hadn't seemed like it was a big deal. Besides Kim's DNA was different, and something being off didn't necessarily mean it was out of place. It simply appeared as the flu. The former ranger shook his head. He should have investigated it further.

"What?" Tommy questioned, not missing the gesture that Billy made.

"Nothing." Billy said simply. He wasn't going to discuss that train of thought with Tommy. He sighed as Tommy shot him a look. "As soon as I know anything about her condition I will tell you." He assured him. "First I need to run tests."

Tommy nodded slowly, wondering what his old friend was thinking. He didn't pursue that line of questioning though, he was afraid of slowing Billy down. He watched as Billy went and started to collect all sorts of samples from Kim.

"I don't know how something like this could have slipped by us." Tommy said with a sigh as he started to pace the floor of the infirmary. If Cerlina had given her something, wouldn't the others have noticed? She would have had to done it during battle. There was no way she could get that close otherwise. And if it was during battle, why was nobody else effected?

"These things happen to rangers." Billy reminded him as he took note of his pacing. "I am going to do everything I can for her."

"You're going to save her." Tommy corrected as the pacing increased. There was no question about it, Billy had to save her. Kim couldn't die like this.

Billy sighed as he worked on getting enough samples to start running tests. Whatever she had, it wasn't run of the mill and it was going to take some work on his end to figure out what it was. He hoped it wouldn't be hard to figure it out, but that didn't mean he wanted to do it with Tommy pacing around his labs and the infirmary fretting over Kim.

He needed to find something for Tommy to do. Something that would get him to focus elsewhere for a bit. "I need to go start running tests. Perhaps you should contact the others?" he suggested. They needed to know, it was their leader who was lying on the table in front of him.

"Fine." Tommy growled as he headed toward the door. He didn't like being given busy work. But he wasn't doing anyone any good pacing around and watching Billy. Besides it was now his responsibility to take command of this team. And Billy was right, they needed to be informed. With a sigh he pushed through the door and headed for the communications console.

* * *

Cerlina listened intently as Cratus wrapped up his findings for her. She was delighted with his results. Although his work on the battlefield hadn't been spectacular as of yet, he had other talents that made him worthy of being on her team. One of them is finding information.

And information he had found. If he was correct, when she was done with Kimmie the thorn in her side would be dead. Gone forever, never to be seen again. "And you are sure your methods will work?" Cerlina asked as he finished his report.

Cratus gave her a slight smile, showing off his sharp teeth. "Although nothing is foolproof, I would stake my life that if you could get to the red ranger, you would kill her."

"Good." Cerlina said, feeling somewhat giddy. She couldn't wait to sink her teeth into Kimmie, regardless of the fact that it wasn't going to be according to her original plan. It was going to be the most fun she'd had in a long time. And when she was finished, there was still an entire planet and its people to destroy.

"Shall I keep an eye on the ranger?" Cratus questioned. He was glad that he could provide some use in this manner. He knew that Cerlina was constantly testing them, and now he had gotten one up on Rizikar. They were about even on the battlefield so far; he needed something to help him stand out. He hoped she would consider his services valuable, especially if she felt the need to get rid of someone. Cerlina was a brilliant evil mastermind, and he had enjoyed his brief time working for her. Plus she was trained by Zarkan. Zarkan was never exactly hiring, and working for her was almost as good as working for Zarkan himself.

"That won't be necessary." A voice boomed from the back of the room. Cratus turned to see Malizor approaching them. "Keeping an eye on the ranger is my responsibility."

"And how is it going?" Cerlina questioned. She was somewhat excited. Malizor was still the fiercest and worthiest soldier she had working for her, and he was her top employee without question. But it was nice to see that he was willing to stand up against anything that could potentially be competition.

"I have some news for you." Malizor said. He had rushed back as soon as he had confirmed the reports and gotten all the details. With something this big he certainly couldn't keep Cerlina waiting.

"Good news I hope." She said, wondering if Kimmie died from the poison and she missed her chance to get in on it. That would be quite disappointing.

Malizor gave her a nod, although the news was both good and bad. "Kimberly is feeling the full effects of the poison. She collapsed in her home a short while ago."

"Really?" Cerlina squeaked. She felt like it was her birthday and she was about to unwrap her greatest present. "Is she at home? We should go pay Kimmie a visit."

"Kimberly is no longer in her house." Malizor said. She wasn't going to be happy about where she was, but he had to tell her.

"Did those humans take her to a hospital?" Cerlina said as she thought about it. As annoying as that was, it wouldn't be a problem. "We can kill her in a hospital. We're going to destroy the planet anyway, we might as well start there. As long as all the rangers aren't with her. As easy as it will be, I don't want to waste time pushing through them to get to her."

"She did not make it to a hospital."

"Oh she is dead." Cerlina pouted, speaking before Malizor could finish his thought. She and Malizor were going to have to have a little talk. It wasn't polite to tease her with information, only to deflate her excitement as quickly as bursting a balloon.

"Her status at this time is uncertain." Malizor spoke, hoping Cerlina would let him finish this time. He understood her excitement, but she needed to hear everything he had to say. "The black ranger drove her away in his jeep. They were spotted teleporting away."

"To their precious little Command Center." Cerlina said with a snarl.

"That is the assumption." Malizor replied.

"How cute. Willie has fixed everything else so far, they think he can fix her." Cerlina paused for a moment. She didn't think he could fix her. At least she hoped he couldn't. If he could figure out what was wrong with her, which he might be able to seeing as how slow this poison is moving in her, she doubted he could reverse the effects. Even if he found something, the poison would kill her first. She still had time. "The plan hasn't change. We'll have to get to Kimmie before she dies, or Willie does something stupid, and kill her."

"Do you have any ideas?" Malizor questioned. It wasn't like they could just run in and grab her. The Command Center was well protected.

Cerlina thought about it. Kimmie had broken into her home to get what she wanted; it was Cerlina's turn to break into hers. She doubted she'd be able to do it stealthily; she'd simply have to go for it. The rangers would be too preoccupied with Kim to put up a decent fight. Maybe she'd even kill some along the way. Once she got past their defenses, the rest should be fairly easy. Willie was no threat and she would be able to do as she wished with Kim.

"Yes, actually I do." Cerlina said cockily. She had a quite brilliant idea if she said so herself. "Round up whoever you can find. Cryobots, monsters, anybody that can fight. We are going to storm their Command Center."

* * *

Rocky sat down on the edge of downtown Angel Grove's fountain, smiling as he pulled Carri gracefully down to sit beside him. This was the most fun he'd had in a long time. And it was almost making him regret his decision to continue their evening.

He felt like such an idiot. Who didn't want to have fun with a beautiful woman? The answer was simple. Someone who wasn't ready for any kind of relationship, especially one that started with him as a spy. He didn't know what he was doing and he couldn't stop himself. This had all been totally unnecessary. But he had done it and it had been fun and now he was more confused than ever.

Carri gave him a slight grin. "Thanks for walking around with me tonight. It was fun." She said, speaking aloud what he was trying not to acknowledge. She had been through downtown Angel Grove many, many times but with Rocky it was different. He was different than her typical date and she liked that.

"No problem. I enjoyed it too." It wasn't a lie on Rocky's part. He did have a good time that was never the issue.

"Maybe next time we'll find something else fun to do." She said with a smile. He looked at her oddly and her smile widened. She could think of a lot of things that were fun to do, but their relationship hadn't budged in that direction yet. He hadn't made any kind of move which was a bit slow for her taste but perhaps this was how it was supposed to go. She didn't know, she never really dated a genuinely good guy. But she did have some fun things in mind that were a bit more at his speed, well their speed.

"What is dinner not fun?" Rocky questioned, wondering if she was hinting toward sex. God knows that was not on the agenda. Not that he wasn't attracted to her, or wouldn't think about her like that but things were messed up enough as it is and he wouldn't even dream of having sex with her.

Carri tossed her head back and laughed at the worried expression that she didn't think he knew he made. She assumed he didn't think she liked his idea of a date. His dates were fine. But dinner was dinner and it got repetitive quickly. "Dinner is good." She said when she put her head down and met his eyes with hers. "But I know Angel Grove well and I know a lot of place we can go to have fun besides restaurants."

"Oh, ok, yeah." Rocky said, somewhat relieved that she wasn't blatantly trying to get him into the bedroom. "We'll do something different next time." As long as it involved time to talk. He had to keep focused on the reason he was going on these dates in the first place.

"How about tomorrow night then?" Carri asked, somewhat afraid she was pushing it. But either he liked her and really wanted to see her some more or he didn't. Either way she'd like to know now so she'd know if it was worth trying to invest in a relationship. She hoped it was. It hadn't been long but she was really starting to like him. If they didn't have a relationship, that was alright. Yeah she'd be upset that she finally found a guy that met her criteria and it didn't work out, but she'd just bury her head into her work until the opportunity presented itself again.

"Tomorrow?" Rocky questioned somewhat surprised that she wanted to go out again the next day. He supposed he shouldn't have been though. They were really having fun, he was having fun, and when you were having fun with someone you kept things going. "Sure, tomorrow is fine." Hopefully it would be fine. Feelings were getting mixed and he was afraid he was going to get pulled in too deep. The worst part was he had a feeling he was going to let it happen.

"Perfect." Carri said with a grin. That settled the question of whether or not he'd want to see her again that soon on a personal level. "You won't be disappointed I promise."

"Ok." Rocky said with a smile. He would have to admit that he was somewhat looking forward to it.

"So," Carri started, stopping as she heard the sounds of screaming kids as water flew into their direction. They both ducked as they heard a frazzled mother say something harshly to them, before dragging them away kicking and screaming. When Carri opened her eyes she noticed her head was next to Rocky's. She found herself with the urge to kiss him. She didn't know why, well that was a lie, he was nice and cute and funny and she liked him and she was going to go for it.

Rocky was more than a little surprised when her lips met his. He couldn't do this, he wasn't ready for this, and he didn't want this. He was apprehensive at first, but the longer her lips stayed there the more he was inclined to kiss her back until he was wrapped up in the moment. When they pulled apart he froze, unsure of what to think. The kiss was amazing, that wasn't the problem. The problem was the fact that he didn't want to do it in the first place. But he did like her. This wasn't helping at all.

"Sorry." Carri said nonchalantly. She was anything but sorry. She enjoyed it and she'd find out now what he thought of her.

"No, don't be sorry." Rocky spoke quickly. She shouldn't have done that but it was nice. "I, well, I mean." Not knowing how to make her feel better, he leaned down and kissed her again. When they broke apart he wasn't sure if she was more surprised or if he was.

Carri smiled at him as she put her hands on the edge of the ledge and leaned back. That was a pleasant surprise. At least she knew going for it wasn't a bad idea. And this kiss itself was nice. She'd definitely be up for doing it some more but he seemed as though that was enough adventure for him for one night. It was ok; she could go at his pace if it meant a good, solid relationship with a good guy. That didn't mean she wouldn't try to encourage his pace to move a little faster. She was actually excited and she hadn't felt that way about a guy in a long time.

Rocky watched her as she leaned back, noticed how beautiful she looked with the moonlight shimmering off of her figure. That second kiss was just as amazing as the first. There were sparks there, he felt them.

Rocky mentally shook himself. God what was he thinking. He was in way over his head. He was just supposed to be gathering information from her. Not dating her, not enjoying her company, and certainly not kissing her. But he couldn't help himself. He was torn. Things were flying through his mind, from his feelings that were starting to develop for her, to the rangers, to the fact that he was newly divorced and wasn't ready for any of this yet. He honestly didn't know what to do.

Carri sat back up, quite curious as to what Rocky was thinking about. "So." She said grinning slyly at him. She had something on the tip of her tongue to get him to open up a bit, but before she could say it a small chirp came from Rocky's body. "What was that?"

Rocky froze all the sudden, working hard to force himself to breathe. He should have known that there was a good chance that this might happen while they were together. He hadn't thought about what he was going to say though. Here he was with Angel Grove's best reporter and he was about to run off to play Power Ranger. She was going to get suspicious. He'd have to work fast to think of something. And pray she'd believe it.

"I told work to page me if they needed me to come in when they called earlier." Rocky spoke, working hard to keep his voice calm and even. "They must be more confused than I thought they were." He said with a nervous laugh.

Carri gave him a slight smile; however she found the whole thing kind of odd. "So you're ditching me?"

"No, not ditching you." Rocky blurted out. "Well, yeah kind of. I really need to go. But I'll see you tomorrow." He promised as he stood. He bent down to kiss her on the cheek, hoping that would ease her mind a bit before turning and tearing off.

Carri huffed as she realized she'd been left alone at the fountain. "Must have been some emergency." She muttered as she crossed her arms over her chest and stood. She'd have to settle for walking back to her car alone. Was this what good guys did? Took off in the middle of a date to help out at work?

Maybe the page had been coincidence and he was taking off because he was nervous after the kiss. Which was kind of cute in a weird sort of way. But still, the whole thing seemed kind of odd. She really liked this guy; she hoped there wasn't some sort of weird quirk about him she needed to worry about. She was definitely going to be keeping a closer eye on him from now on.

* * *

Jason slid onto a bar stool next to his dinner guest from earlier in the evening, motioning with a wave of his hand for the bartender to bring them a couple of beers. He took a huge swig of his as it arrived and grinned and the man sitting next to him. "Are you sure you don't want me to gather the troops? They'll kill me if they knew you slipped into town without seeing them."

"Nah. Los Angeles isn't that far away. I'll have to come back sometime." Zack said as he smiled at Jason before taking a swig of his beer as well. Los Angeles was the town he called home, the town whose city council he served on. It wasn't that far away from Angel Grove. What had brought him back to his old stomping grounds today had been business. But he couldn't take off without meeting Jason for food and beer. "Besides you said Kim has the flu. No way am I taking that home with me."

Jason let out a laugh. "Billy's on top of it. She'll be better soon. Then she'll give me a piece of her mind for not setting up some sort of reunion."

"We'll set something up." Zack said with a laugh. He didn't want to be on Kim's bad side, dragging Jason along with him. Kim would give them an earful. "Maybe we can even drag everybody else back this way now that Billy's in town and have a real reunion. I'm sure Trini will come, she's only in San Francisco."

"Yeah maybe." Jason said as he glanced up at the television, the repeat of a story that had run earlier catching his eye. There was Angel Grove's favorite reporter, in the middle of the monster attack. Zack followed his gaze, watching as the battle unfolded and she speculated some on the identities of the rangers. Jason made a gruff noise before chugging his beer.

"I'm glad I don't have her on my ass." Zack said with a chuckle. Although she was gorgeous, he wouldn't mind. In reality though she had quite the reputation as a reporter and it was dangerous that she was working the ranger's story.

"Rocky's dating her." Jason said shaking his head. Although he supposed he wasn't really dating her. It was an information gathering exercise. At least he thought that was all it was. He had seen them together earlier. Rocky was interested. However Jason had to admit that he was interested, but for other reasons.

"Seriously?" Zack questioned, wondering if the blue ranger was keeping his enemy a little too close. That was treading on dangerous ground.

"He's gathering intel." Jason replied with a shrug. He could see the skepticism in Zack's response. He didn't blame him, he didn't like it either. He had multiple secrets to hide and the closer she was, the more nervous he became.

"If that's it then he can pass her on to me." Zack joked. Well it was mostly a joke. He hadn't had a girlfriend in a while; he'd take one for the team. "I can gather information without worrying about being called to duty in the middle of a date."

Jason shook his head as he smiled. Zack was always the one to run after a pretty girl. "Not that it isn't a better idea than sending Rocky after her, but I doubt you could pull that off."

"Why not? I'm flawless with the ladies." Zack questioned, and to make his point he made eye contact with the brunette sitting at the end of the bar, giving her a smile. The woman gave him a half smile back before looking away.

Jason chuckled. "I'm sorry I forgot all about high school." He said with a smile as he glanced over at his friend. "You asked a lot of girls out. They were the odd ones though. How many girls do you know that spend every Saturday night washing their hair?"

"You think you're funny?" Zack questioned as he finished his beer and put it down. "Can we get a couple more over here." He called out to the bartender.

"Sometimes the truth is funny." Jason said with a grin before downing the last of his beer bottle. He watched as two more beers came their way and were set on the bar top in front of them.

"I had more luck with the ladies than you did. Still do." Zack said as he turned around in his barstool and glanced over the crowd. "Pick anyone in here and I can take them home tonight."

Jason let out a laugh. "How about the brunette?" he asked, sticking his thumb in the direction of the end of the bar.

Zack shook his head no. "I've got to start fresh. I was just playing with her."

Jason leaned up against the bar as he started to work on his new beer. "You know why this isn't going to work." He said as Zack turned back around and leaned against the bar as well. Jason had his list of reasons ready but before he could dive into them his communicator chirped.

"Duty calls." Zack said, giving him a smile as he took a swig of beer. He enjoyed being a ranger and he'd do it again if they needed him. But he didn't miss the constant interruptions that came with being on the team.

"I'll be right back." Jason said as he stood up and walked off.

"I'll let you pick when you're through." Zack called after him, smiling as he watched his friend disappear from sight.

* * *

Tommy started pacing the main room of the Command Center nervously. He had paged all the rangers, now he was just waiting for them to get there. Finally one by one multicolored lights shimmered in front of him, and within a few moments their ranger team was assembled.

"What's going on?" Karone asked. She and Zhane had been with Ashley and Andros when they got the page. Tommy had said it was an emergency and that he'd give them details when they arrived.

Jason had known Tommy for a long time and it wasn't hard to pick up on the look of distress he was wearing on his face. He had seen it a few times before. "What happened to Kim?" he asked, emotions similar to the ones Tommy had been feeling rushing toward him. He and Kim had practically grown up together. Although they hadn't kept up as much as he would have liked over the years, she was still like a sister to him.

Tommy was surprised at first. But then again he supposed he was wearing his emotions on his sleeve. And if anyone could pick them up, it would be Jason. "Whatever is making her sick, it's not the flu."

"What happened?" Jason repeated his question, his voice a little more firm this time. Tommy was obviously upset but he needed to fill the team in.

"I don't know, Billy is running some tests…" Tommy let his voice trail off. He noticed the looks from the rest of the team and he took a deep breath to compose himself. "She's been getting sicker all evening. I was hoping the medicine just hadn't kicked in yet, but then she collapsed and I brought her here."

Karone shook her head. She knew there were a lot of things that could bring a person down like that and none of them were good. "It has to be Cerlina. She did something to Kim."

"Has she been close enough to Kim to give her something?" Rocky questioned, worrying how exactly Cerlina would have gotten to Kim. Nothing unusual has happened in battle lately, and Kim was too smart to let Cerlina walk up and do something to her. There was a chance that it was something that was airborne, and that could mean that the whole team was in trouble.

"No, she hasn't." Tommy replied. That worried him as well. Something of that nature they would have seen, they would have known what was going on. Yet they were clueless. The power couldn't protect them if she could find a way to slip in and kill them slowly.

As Tommy spoke a set of metallic doors swung open. An obviously frustrated Billy walked through, somewhat pleased to find the entire team there waiting for him. "Did you find anything?" Zhane asked, the first one to bombard him with questions.

The others quickly followed and Billy had to whistle to get everyone to quiet down. "I have been doing some in depth analysis of samples I took from Kim." He said, pausing to make sure he had everyone's attention. "It appears as though she has been poisoned. I am unsure as to what the exact nature of the poison is but I do have some ideas."

"Is she going to be alright?" Tommy questioned. There was a sense of hope in his voice. Billy had found a starting spot to work through this. That was usually all he needed to find the answer.

"The poison is slow acting in her system. But it is meant to kill her." Billy explained. He hated to say it like that but there was no way to sugarcoat it.

"No." Tommy said sharply. He wasn't going to let that happen. He couldn't, he loved Kim. He refused to lose her like this. If he had to trade in his own life he would to save her. "Tell me what needs to be done, I'll do whatever it takes."

Jason nodded his head. "I'll help too. We have to save her." His words were followed by a chorus of agreement from his teammates.

"It's not that simple." Billy said, the tone in his voice souring the mood of the group even worse than before. "I am running additional tests. Those results should be available momentarily. Hopefully they will allow me to be more conclusive. I believe that something of this nature needs a cure."

"You can make a cure can't you?" Rocky asked. It seemed as though Billy always had a cure. It would be devastating to everyone on the team if this was the time he couldn't pull through for them.

"I have contacted one of my colleagues." His private communications system was going through all the appropriate channels now. Hopefully by the time they were connected and ready to talk he would have something solid to work with. He hated using outside sources but he was almost certain he was going to need another mind on this. "My hope is that together we will figure out something."

Tommy opened his mouth to protest but Billy cut him off. "I wanted to pass that information along to you. I have to get back to work if we have any chance of saving Kim."

With that Billy disappeared, leaving the team of rangers alone. "If anyone can do it, it's Billy." Jason was the first to break the silence that had descended on them. "I've lost track of how many times he's saved the team."

"I know." Tommy replied, his voice so soft it was almost a whisper. "Damnit!" He swore aloud, turning and smashing his palm into the nearest console. He had never felt this helpless in his entire tenure as a ranger. It was an awful feeling in the pit of his stomach and he didn't know what to do.

"We have to stay strong." Karone said as Tommy shot her a look. Whether or not their leader wanted to hear this, he had to. "If Cerlina did this, which we have to assume she did, she's going to know we're one down. She'll send everything to attack, we have to be ready." It's what she would have done.

The hand that had smashed into the console was slowly balling into a fist. He lifted it up, and taking a deep breath he unclenched it and placed it by his side. Karone was right. He couldn't fall apart. He had to lead this team against whatever was coming up next. "Don't worry; we'll be ready for Cerlina."

Jason wasn't buying it. Tommy was a mix of emotions right now. They were all upset over Kim. It was hard to forget about the fact that she was dying and think about fighting. Zhane and Karone didn't know her as well; perhaps it was easier for them. They wouldn't be, they couldn't be ready for Cerlina. But he knew the team. They'd stand and protect Earth against her, ready or not.

"Maybe Cerlina won't attack for a while." Rocky said, his optimism felt by the other rangers. But before they could share in it, the alarms went off. Rocky let out a sigh. He should have kept his mouth shut.

Tommy stood straight up as he assumed the role of leader. He walked up toward the console and pulled the disturbance up on the screen. The reactions of his fellow rangers were obvious. The grim looks and pale faces on his friends along with the noises of surprise indicated the severity of the situation.

Marching through the desert was Cerlina, accompanied by a massive army. They were close enough that they probably didn't need the screen to follow their movement, they could just duck outside. Billy had always assured them that this place was built with the capability to hold off any attack. But Cerlina wasn't just anybody. And she was heading straight for them.


	19. Rescue Me

**Disclaimer: **PR belongs to Disney. Everyone else belongs to me.  
**Author's Notes:** This is the conclusion to the last two chapters. Enjoy!  
Just to let everyone know, I will be out of town from Wed - Sun of this week. Most likely any reviews or private messages I get during that time won't get replies until I return.

Return to Action  
"Rescue Me"

Billy watched as a familiar face appeared on the viewing screen of the smaller communications terminal in his lab. Not a face he wanted to see but a familiar face nonetheless. "Hello Cestria."

"Billy." She stated as though the word was foul. She had no desire to see him. She thought she had made that quite clear to him before. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"This isn't a social call." He said, wondering if she actually assumed it was. They did still work together occasionally. However most of their communications had been going through their assistants ever since they divorced, or as their marriage dissolved as the Aquitarians called it. Whatever one wanted to refer to it as, it had ended in a mess.

He supposed it had boiled down to the fact that they were two separate species, with an interest in science being their one commonality. But that thread wasn't strong enough to hold them together forever. Now that it was said and done he couldn't really say what had started it. He remembered the fights, the accusations, the break up, the awkwardness of trying to work together after… that was one of the reasons why he tried to conduct his business off planet for the most part. While with Cestria he tried to conduct most of his intergalactic business from the comfort of his own home. But once they split he took any excuse he could to work elsewhere. She was one of the reasons he had jumped on the opportunity to return to Earth to help out.

"I'm too busy with my own work. I don't have time to help you out with one of your projects." Cestria said simply. Once there was a time when she would jump in and lend him a hand. But that time had long since passed, they both were aware of that.

"It's not about my work." Billy spoke quickly. She was ready to write him off and end this communication now. He briefly wondered if she knew who was calling when the transmission finally made it to her. He doubted it, she probably would have someone else pick up if she did.

"If this isn't social and it isn't about work then what is it about?" Cestria questioned. It wasn't like Billy to call her out of the blue. Her patience was running thin and she wouldn't give him much more before she called it quits.

"It's about the rangers." There was a harsh tone to Billy's response but Cestria's clear irritation was aggravating. He had a real situation here and like it or not she was the smartest person he could turn to for help.

"The rangers?" Cestria questioned, somewhat surprised. That kept her from hanging up on him quickly. At the very least she had to hear him out. Rangers were revered on Aquitar and it would not look good for her or her lab if she snubbed her nose at a request for help from a team of rangers. Delphine was already mad at her for pushing Billy off world. He was an esteemed scientist, having him there was wonderful for the Aquitarian community. That didn't mean she had to help Billy, but if she didn't listen to what was going on and it got back to Delphine she was afraid the former ranger with political ties would see to it that she was shipped off to the most desolate rock that she could find to do research.

"Kim has been poisoned by Cerlina. She doesn't have much time." Billy spoke quickly now that he knew he had her full attention. "I have some ideas of where to go from here but you have access to more." It hurt him to say the words. As a former ranger and an intergalactic scientist he had the top lab in the galaxy in Aquitar. His lab in the Command Center was comparable but there was a lot that it was lacking. "We need your help."

Billy frowned when Cestria hesitated. She didn't want to help him and he was afraid she was going to say no. He could see it in her eyes. Before she could say anything out loud Billy heard the alarms go off. It was a blessing in disguise. "I'm transferring all the data and lab tests I have to you." He said as his fingers flew over the console buttons. "I have to go check on the alarm but you can look over those and I will return."

He took off as the information flew from his Command Center to the labs on Aquitar. Within seconds she would be downloading the first bits of it. Now that the alarms were going he had an excuse to get her to look at the information and think about helping him while he went to see what was going on.

It didn't take long after heading into the main room to realize that something was going horribly wrong. "What's happening?" Billy questioned looking at the ranger team.

"Cerlina has an army heading straight for us." Tommy said. Between the tone in his voice and the stance he took there was no doubt that he was in full leader mode. He was no longer fretting about Kim. They had ranger duties to fulfill and a Command Center to protect. They would all die if they failed.

If it weren't for the dire situation Billy would have said this was exactly what he needed. Taking the role of the strong, confidant ranger leader was going to pull him together. And it was the only chance this team had of defeating the army that they saw on the viewing screen. "I've made preparations for this." Billy said as he headed toward the control panels.

"What kind of preparations?" Tommy questioned as the rangers gave him their full attention.

"Barriers for the facility. A combination of magic and technology." Billy explained quickly. Command Centers tended to be a focal point for the bad guys. Two of Zordon's facilities had been destroyed and Tommy's own Command Center had taken damage in his fight with the Dino Thunder team. He knew they needed another method of assurance to keep the bad guys out.

"We can't barricade ourselves in here." Tommy pointed out, watching as the others nodded in agreement. It was a nice thought. But he doubted Cerlina and her army would give up and if they were going to get her to go away they were going to have to fight her, not lock the door and pray she gets bored and goes home.

"I know." Billy replied. He hadn't expected them to. "You guys go fight and I will set the system up. I will be able to keep our equipment safe, keep Kim safe and allow me to continue to work on a cure without interruption." In theory anyway. He had never actually gotten to put the system to use.

"Good." Tommy said giving him a nod. That was one less thing he had to worry about. As long as Kim was safe in here, he could give his full attention to the fight out there. "Then we should go."

As one the team moved together to get into position to morph. Billy watched as the group transformed into the Sonic Force rangers and disappeared from sight. Moving quickly he made sure all the barriers were secured before hustling back to speak with Cerlina.

When he arrived he thought she looked less confused and more irritated than she had when he left a few moments ago. "Are you going to be able to help us?" Billy wasted no time getting to the point. He didn't have time to waste. If Cestria couldn't, or wouldn't help he'd have to figure out something else. He hoped that he'd given her enough time to look over the data and make the right decision.

"What do you need me to do?" Cestria replied sharply. She didn't want to help but she agreed for two reasons. One was that listening to Billy wasn't enough to keep Delphine off her back. If she ignored a serious ranger request for help it would reflect poorly on her. The other reason is that she knew enough to know that Kim is probably the only one who can stop Cerlina. And that was one person the galaxy would be better off without.

Billy gave her a nod, hoping that was enough to acknowledge that he appreciated her help. Now hopefully the two of them could pool their resources and figure out a way to save Kim. He gave a brief thought to his comrades outside before he turned his full attention to the situation at hand.

* * *

Cerlina raised an eyebrow in surprise at the unified front that stood before her. They appeared to be actually ready to put up a fight. "Well I see you've managed to pull yourselves together long enough to make some sort of miserable effort to stand against me."

Tommy took her statement as an admission that she knew exactly what had happened to Kim and that infuriated him. He wanted nothing more than to run over there and rip her head off. But they had to do this as a team. There were too many villains to face for him to start off on a personal vendetta. "You've underestimated us Cerlina." Tommy said simply. "Don't worry, soon you'll have plenty of time to sit in your palace and think about what went wrong."

Cerlina snarled at the team's obvious leader. She wasn't sure what he meant by underestimated them. She hoped that it was just him bragging about his team's skills. If it had to do with them curing Kimmie, well angry wouldn't accurately describe her reaction. If Kimmie didn't die today, by her hand or otherwise, she was going to make the remainder of these miserable little rangers lives so painful that they will be begging her for death.

"Get them." She commanded her army, pointing one finger toward the rangers. She grabbed Malizor by the arm before he could join the others. "Try to get into the Command Center and make sure Kimmie's still dying. And see to it that the black ranger is left for me. When I'm finished with him the others will fall."

Malizor nodded in agreement as he went to join the others, clearing somewhat of a path out for Cerlina as he headed toward the doors of the Command Center. They definitely outnumbered the rangers, it was just a matter of time before the rangers were defeated and Cerlina could get what she wanted. He reached the exterior of the building and quickly realized that it was being guarded by some sort of barrier. He was certain that he could figure out how to break through it but it was going to take time and he may have to take off to get a solution. Cerlina wasn't going to be happy.

At the moment Cerlina wasn't worried about what Malizor was doing. She had doubted they would make it easy for her to get in but she trusted Malizor to do what was necessary. She put one hand on each of her sais, slowly drawing them out as she walked toward the black ranger. She caught Rizikar and Cratus out of the corner of her eye and saw that they, along with her monsters and Cryobots, were doing a good job of beating the remaining rangers. It was the lone black ranger that wasn't quite sure where to offer his assistance that she was after.

He looked up and off into the horizon, and Cerlina was aware of the moment his eyes caught hers. His posture stiffened and he gripped his weapon tightly in his hands. He was ready for the fight but she couldn't help but feel as though he was afraid of her, and that pleased her. Sais in hand she leaped into the air and initiated an attack that was quickly blocked by his spear.

"So this isn't going to be that easy. I like a challenge." Cerlina spoke as she hit the floor and grinned at him. Of course it wasn't going to be that much of a challenge. She knew how to get under his skin, get him off of his game and she was going to put that knowledge to good use.

"I'm not going to let you get away with this." Tommy said as he ran to attack her furiously. Cerlina blocked his moves as she grinned at him. The woman was baiting him and he knew it. But the team was suffering enough with everything else going on. If Cerlina wanted to battle, he'd be the one to do battle with her.

She was going to wait to start picking away at him. But he had given her too good of an opening. "Getting away with what? Demolishing your Command Center? Killing you and your friends?" She said as they fought. "Or starting Kimmie off on a slow, painful death." She had hit a nerve and he attacked furiously. With his anger came a lack of focus and with one good hit Tommy was on the ground.

"Damnit." He swore as he pulled himself back up. He had to try to separate his thoughts from Kim. He couldn't let her get to him like that.

"How is Kimmie by the way?" Cerlina questioned as Tommy stood and turned toward her. He was still trying to focus on their fight. He wouldn't break as easily as she thought. This was going to be fun.

"She'll be fine." Tommy replied forcefully as he went to try to pay her back for the hit she gave him. He found himself irritated as Cerlina laughed in response. But he couldn't lose focus.

Tommy's voice had been rough but Cerlina could pick up on the hint of uncertainty that was in his speech. "Fine?" She repeated as they continued to fight. "I didn't think unconscious was fine."

Tommy couldn't help but wonder how Cerlina knew that detail. She must have had spies watching her, watching them. They must have been near the apartment. For them to be that close and Tommy not know… the thought bothered him more than just a little. They were going to have to take a serious look at security when this was done. "She's awake now. She said she'll be down for you in a few." He lied. Whether or not she'd buy it he wasn't sure but he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of knowing that Kim was still unconscious.

"That's cute." Cerlina said with a smile. "Pathetic but cute. For the leader of the rangers to be mixing his fantasy in with reality, well I personally don't think I would have let you lead in this state of mind but I suppose I'm not on your pathetic little team now am I."

Tommy didn't respond, instead he attacked her with more determination than before. Cerlina smiled. His non verbal response spoke volumes. She had been right, Kimmie was no better off than the last time she spotted her. Perhaps she was worse off. Hopefully not too bad though, she would be disappointed to go through all this and not be able to watch Kimmie die.

As they fought she decided to share his concerns with the team's temporary leader. She smiled as she thought that perhaps he could give her some insight. "Tell me she's not doing too much worse." She said, watching as Tommy didn't respond but instead took a swipe at her with his weapon. She caught it in her sai and tossed it aside, hitting him in back with her free hand. "I know she's going to die without my interference but really the whole point of this attack was for me to be able to personally take part in seeing to it that whatever life she had remaining drain from her slowly until there's nothing left except for a shell of what she used to be."

He knew he shouldn't let Cerlina get to him like that but he couldn't help it. This was Kim she was talking about. His Kim, the one who he had loved through high school and the one who had agreed to marry him. He loved her with all of his heart and the thought of Cerlina getting to her, killing his helpless fiancé, was too much. He should've stayed focused, stayed logical, perhaps even switched battles with another ranger. Instead he ran at Cerlina head on like a bull heading for his target.

Cerlina grinned to herself as Tommy came rushing toward her. Apparently she had pressed the right button. As he approached her they locked into battle, one that quickly ended with her logically thinking mind outweighing his emotionally charged one. He flew back to the ground and that was when Cerlina decided it was time to access powers she hadn't touched since Phaedos.

Eyes glowing red she called to the power from within. She could feel the fire burning inside of her and she channeled it through her body until it came out as a burst from her hands. The electrically charged fireball she had formed shot through her fingers and hit the black ranger straight on just has he had gotten to his feet. As he fell he powered down and Cerlina walked over toward him.

"This is unexpected." Cerlina said as she stood over the man who was withering in pain. She was certain that sort of thing would kill him. Their powers must have been protecting them more than she thought. But even their ranger powers couldn't stand up to the kind of power she possessed.

She put a foot to his chest to get him to stop moving around so much. He looked up at her and recognized that he needed to get away. But he hurt and he wasn't thinking straight after getting hit that hard by her blast.

Cerlina smiled as she twirled her sais in her hands. The other rangers were completely occupied with the rest of her friends leaving her and Tommy alone. She had plenty of time to do this the old fashioned way. She hadn't dismembered anybody piece by piece in a while. This ought to be fun.

* * *

"I am sending you something now. You should receive it momentarily." Cestria's voice came through the communications panel. She had to admit that Kimberly's problem was difficult. Billy had started on some equations on his end but she had the necessarily materials on her end. So she was sending him what he needed plus some things he didn't ask for. She had done her own calculations. The poison wouldn't reverse itself without her additions to the cure. He would thank her later. If not, when and if Kim survived Cestria would call him and make sure he knew why he succeeded.

"Thank you." Billy said, waiting anxiously for her teleportation. Objects sent between planets usually took some time to get there. Of course it wasn't too bad, but it wasn't instant like teleporting within a planet's atmosphere. He wasn't usually one to complain about the lag but Kim's situation was deteriorating by the minute, if he didn't give her something to slow or reverse the effects of the poison soon he was afraid they would lose her forever.

A few seconds later a box materialized before him. Billy lifted the lid on the metallic box and examined his contents. "The power rangers appreciate you help." Billy said as he glanced up at Cestria.

She gave him a slight nod. She wanted to hear him say that he appreciated her help but she doubted he would. "If you need anything else let me know." She said. The words were simply a formality and she didn't want to hear from him again. She gave him what she thought was a nice smile before reaching over and ending the transmission.

Billy shook his head. She was the last person he wanted to go to. He was very lucky that she agreed to help him. She could've just hung up on him. But the quickest way to get what he needed was to go to her. He glanced into the box, realizing that he couldn't think about Cestria anymore if he was going to save Kim.

He pulled the contents of the box out and spread them across a table before going back to his work. He knew he needed to move quickly, but at the same time he couldn't make any mistakes. One wrong move and what he gave Kim would kill her instead of cure her. One by one he picked up what he had and what Cerlina sent him, going through everything to make sure it was just right. He noticed the odd items, the things he hadn't asked for. He looked them over and contemplated if there was any use for them.

After a few moments he decided they wouldn't hurt and they might actually help, so he reworked his equations to include them. It felt like hours had passed by but in reality it only took him a few minutes to come up with a final product that he could feel somewhat confident in. He wished that he could test it, could make sure that it had the desired effects. But there wasn't any time. This was his one shot. If this didn't cure Kim he would be at a loss, and he wasn't sure if he would have the proper amount of time to come up with a plan B.

Rushing to his unconscious friend Billy injected her with what he was hoping was the antidote. He sat by her bedside, crossing his fingers and waiting for her vitals to show some sign of life. Within seconds of her receiving the antidote the steady decrease of her vitals leveled off. That was good but it was no reason to get excited. He just shook things up a bit so it was natural for the poison to stop. Whether it would overcome the antidote and continue to kill her or whether she would survive was yet to be seen.

Billy sat with his eyes fixated on the red ranger. His mother always told him "a watched pot never boils". But that didn't keep him from looking. Only briefly did he turn away, long enough to glance at the action outside to see that the rangers were taking severe hits and Tommy was barely standing against Cerlina. This wasn't good at all. Even if Kim survived she wouldn't be strong enough to fight. Besides, what extra could she bring to the battle? The rangers were heavily outnumbered. He thought about sending out an SOS and hoping that there were some ranger teams close enough to respond before any of his friends were killed.

He turned his attention back to Kim. She wasn't getting any worse but there were no signs that she was getting better. He let out a small sigh. He was going to have to turn his attention toward the team. It was up to her now if she was going to make it. As he stood he caught a glimpse of the monitors out of the corner of his eye. Much to his surprise the numbers edged up. The team forgotten, he sat back down to concentrate on Kim. The numbers stopped for a moment before surging up a second time and stopping again.

Was it working? It was hard to tell. They hadn't gone up high enough to say for sure that she was going to make it through this. But for the moment they weren't going any lower. After a few seconds the numbers bumped up so slight that only someone who was watching would have noticed. If she was going to make a full recovery it would take a while.

As he turned his attention back toward the team a weak voice spoke. "Where am I?"

Billy looked back toward Kim, relieved that she had regained consciousness. He hoped that it would last. Her vitals hadn't improved anymore but they were staying steady. "Tommy brought you here after you fainted. Do you remember?"

Kim shook her head no. The last thing she clearly remembered was the throwing up. Everything else was kind of fuzzy after that. "Your antidote didn't work." She said, doing her best to give Billy a look.

"How are you feeling?" Billy questioned. He wanted to ease her into what happened. She wasn't well enough to be stressing out just yet.

"Like the flu is winning." Kim said as she looked around the small room. "Where's Tommy?"

Billy paused, unsure of what to say. He wanted to lie to her but he couldn't, his monitors gave him away. The sounds of the fight pulled Kim into reality and she attempted to sit up, only to be joined quickly by Billy who sat next to her and held her in place. "Your vitals aren't close to what they should be, you need to rest."

"What's going on?" Kim asked. She managed to harden her voice enough to let Billy know he owed her some answers. Weak or not, she was still the leader of this team.

Billy sighed. He needed to tell her. Surely she wouldn't think she was in any shape to do anything about it. "Cerlina poisoned you. You should've been dead. You still could die."

"And the others?" Kim asked glancing toward the monitor. She tried not to focus on how in the hell Cerlina had gotten close enough to poison her. Cerlina was going to have to be taken care of.

"Cerlina's right outside our walls. Tommy took the team down to stop her and keep the Command Center safe." Billy quickly explained.

Kim watched as Cerlina put her foot on Tommy's unmorphed body. "I have to go help him." It was quite obvious that none of the other rangers knew what was going on. Cerlina was going to kill Tommy and she couldn't, she wouldn't let that happen.

Billy grabbed her as she slid off of the table. "I can't let you go out there. Your vitals have quit going up. There's a chance that they'll turn and plunge downward and you'll die. You have to stay here so I can keep an eye on you."

"I wasn't asking permission." Kim said testily. "Look Billy, thank you for everything you have done but that's my team, my fiancé out there that need my help. Either I'll keep getting better or I'll die. Either way I have to go out there." She watched as Billy opened his mouth to protest. "I felt like this the last time I went to fight and the power gave me a boost." She was aware that they both knew it was a lie. She was sick last time but it wasn't this bad. Plus she wasn't going immediately in as a full morphed ranger. She was going to take care of Cerlina first. And although she had stronger powers as a morphed ranger she had a few tricks up her sleeve that she knew would get Cerlina to leave Tommy alone.

"Ninjetti, crane!" she called out, watching as a surprised Billy let go of her. Before Billy could protest Kim took off for the battlefield.

* * *

Cerlina sat on Tommy's chest, her body pinning his legs and torso down while her hands put pressure on his arms. He was still struggling and the fire had yet to die in his eyes. She liked that. It was more fun when she could personally put out the flames.

Tommy tried to move, tried to do anything to stop what he knew was coming next. He was mentally and physically drained from that last blast and getting away from her wasn't as easy as it should have been. With all the strength he had left he jolted her hard with his legs and put his hands to the ground, trying his hardest to pull his body out from under her. If he could just get free he could morph again.

"Naughty ranger." Cerlina said, lunging forward to stick a sai in his upper arm before he could get too far.

The pain was blinding and Tommy screamed out, immediately falling back to the ground. He didn't even notice as Cerlina repositioned herself on top of him.

She sighed and shook her head as she removed the sai. "That wasn't where I was going to start but it will do."

Tommy put his hand to his wound, hoping he could stop the bleeding. Not surprisingly red oozed through his fingers and dripped down his arm, making a puddle on the dirt below.

"Hmm." Cerlina said thoughtfully as she watched Tommy bleed. It wasn't gushing as much as it should. "It looks like I managed to miss hitting a major artery. I suppose that's lucky for me, I can start how I wanted to." She ripped his fingers away from his injured arm and pulled them up so she could inspect them.

Before she started she took a brief glance around the battlefield. It was both good and bad that none of the rangers knew what she was doing. She wanted them to watch her kill another one of their leaders. But then again they might just try to stop her. Figuring she'd just continue on, she turned her attention back toward Tommy.

She was about to get properly started on him when a red streak flashed across her vision. Cerlina frowned. She had to have been hallucinating. As she went back to the task at hand she saw it again. She found herself with a bad feeling that this was more than just a hallucination.

For a moment she remembered the ranger in pain that she was sitting on top of. There was no time left to play with him. She had bigger things to deal with. With a quick flip of her wrist she went to end his miserable life. But before her sai could touch flesh a ranger came spiraling out of nowhere and hit her in the chest, knocking her back.

"Stay away from Tommy." Kim threatened as she leaned down to help him up. "Are you ok?" The question was rhetorical. There was blood dripping down his arm, he was obviously not ok.

"Kim?" Tommy questioned in disbelief, holding her arms and looking at the Ninjetti in front of him. "You're ok?"

"Yes." She replied simply. She felt worse than crap and should never have come out there but she wasn't going to admit that. She had a villain to take care of.

"That's impossible." Cerlina snarled as she stood.

"Anything's possible when you've got the power on your side." Kim replied with a smile, moving away from Tommy so that she was standing in between him and Cerlina. She inched forward some as she heard his morphing call. "You and I have some unfinished business to attend to."

"I thought I would easily finish you off today and take care of it but it appears as though this is going to take some more work." Cerlina replied, twisting her sais as she glared at Kim.

"I don't take kindly to people trying to kill me." Kim replied as she called for her staff. Kim was going to make this quick and easy. If she could get Cerlina to leave, hopefully the rest of her crew would fall like dominos.

"For the record I wasn't initially trying to kill you." Cerlina said with a shrug before smiling at the black ranger who was taking a stand beside his girlfriend. "I was originally aiming to kill him. You ended up being a bonus."

Tommy watched as Malizor reappeared out of nowhere and walked over to Cerlina's side. The big red demon was obviously just as shocked to see Kim standing there as everyone else. Tommy called for his weapon and glared at Cerlina. "How did you do it?" he asked. He had to know. It wasn't as though it was easy to get to a ranger.

"Please like I'm going to reveal my secrets to you." Cerlina said with a laugh. She turned toward Malizor. "Forget the Command Center. Keep the black ranger busy while I take care of our little friend here."

"With pleasure." Malizor replied. He was hoping he'd get the opportunity to fight. He ran toward the black ranger and hit him hard enough to send him back. Tommy stood up and the fight started. Kim glanced back briefly only to quickly realize that Tommy and Malizor had disappeared into the mix along with the rest of her team.

She didn't have time to worry if he was going to be ok. Cerlina came charging at her. As much as she wanted to fight her she was weak and she had to play this smart. As Cerlina swung she vanished, reappearing behind her. "Missed me."

Cerlina spun around and curled her upper lip up. She went over to her to take a swing and watched as she disappeared once more before a red blur ran around her on the battlefield, finally setting several yards off to her side. "Are we going to play these childish games?" Cerlina questioned. These were merely parlor tricks, any Ninjetti could learn them. Cerlina wanted a battle and she had thought Kim wanted one too.

As Cerlina turned toward Kim, the red Ninjetti zipped past her once more. "Nope." She replied, using her staff much like she had on Phaedos. It filled with energy and she wasted no time unleashing it toward Cerlina. It hit her straight on and her enemy flew across the battlefield. It wasn't enough to kill her but it was enough to keep her unconscious for a while.

Kim turned her attention toward the rest of the battle and noticed Jason's monster fall to the ground in a mini-explosion. As he disappeared she morphed into her Sonic Force form before running toward Jason. "Since you did so well with that one let's give Karone a hand."

"Are you ok?" Jason asked, more worried about his friend than this monster.

"Getting there." Kim replied. She thought she was feeling slightly better but perhaps that was an illusion. After all she had morphed, it would mask some of her symptoms for a while. "Come on." She said as she took off.

Jason followed closely behind, the duo making their way toward Karone as they fought off several of the Cryobots along the way. Finally they reached her and joined in with her fight. A few minutes later her monster was down as well.

"Good to see you up out here." Karone said giving Kim a nod.

Kim smiled from behind her helmet. It was nice that someone appreciated that she was helping without worrying about her health. "Let's split up, help the others."

"Got it." Jason replied, turning toward the closest battle. As Jason hooked up with Zhane to fight against Cratus, Karone went to join Rocky in his battle against Rizikar, leaving Kim with Malizor and Tommy. Things were looking much better than they had a few minutes ago. The number of Cryobots were dwindling and they just had three of these guys left to deal with. Maybe they would all walk out of here intact.

As those fights raged on Cerlina found her-self in a remote corner of the battlefield, finally coming to after Kim's attack. She swore to herself as she pulled herself up. That one hurt more than it did on Phaedos. She didn't have the energy to fight and she didn't have the clarity to plan again at the moment. She looked across the battlefield and noticed that her monsters were gone and the remainder of her Cryobots were about to meet the same fate. The others were fighting fiercely but getting nowhere.

"Enough!" she yelled loudly enough to get all heads to snap in her direction. Kim was alive and it was obvious she wouldn't be killing her today. She had lost most of her army and she needed to recuperate before she proceeded. "You may have one this time rangers but don't worry, we'll be back. And I promise I won't let you get this lucky again." She motioned for the others to join her and she tried to salvage whatever dignity she had left as they took off.

The rangers were more than relieved when the battlefield was empty and they teleported themselves back inside the Command Center, powering down as everyone started asking questions. Kim put her fingers to her lips and let out a high pitched whistle. The action was enough for her to waver a bit and Tommy reached out and grabbed her. As he did Kim looked at his arm, which was healing nicely. "Are you ok?" she repeated her question from earlier.

"I'll be fine." Tommy assured her. It was her that he was worried about. "Is everything going to be ok with you?"

"That is yet to be determined." Billy replied before Kim had a chance to say anything. Kim took off before he could run any serious tests. He assumed that if she still hadn't rejected the cure she would be fine, but he would like to be positive before he sent her home.

"When will you know?" Jason questioned. He didn't like the thought that Kim's life may still be hanging in the balance.

"I'm going to run some more tests. I hope to have a conclusive answer soon." Billy replied as he glanced over at the rangers.

The tension that the group seemed to be having dissolved as the others loosened up a bit. Karone looked around the room as everyone started to make them-selves comfortable. "Do you need us to wait?" she questioned. She and Zhane had been with Andros and Ashley before this whole fiasco began and she would like to get back to her brother.

"It is most likely that Kim will be fine as soon as her body fully recovers." That was Billy's assumption, after all she had just fought with the team and she wasn't looking any worse. "You should all get back to what you were doing before we paged you. I expect to be able to send Kim home shortly."

The group stood and nodded. Most of them had been busy before this started. Rocky was the only one who had left without the intention of returning to his company, and he wanted to go home so he could figure out how to keep Carri from being suspicious.

"Let me know if you need me." Jason said to Tommy, who gave him a nod in response.

Tommy watched as one by one the rest of the team teleported out before he turned toward Billy. "Let's get this done. We need to get her back to her mom."

Kim moaned and Tommy was right by her side waiting to figure out what was wrong. "We have to figure out what to tell my mother." She explained with a sigh. She hoped Billy wouldn't finish running his tests that quickly. Before he cleared her to go home she needed to think of a good lie to tell her mother.

* * *

Carri found herself walking through the streets of downtown Angel Grove, heading toward her car. As she got close she found herself standing in front of a bar that she'd been in on a few occasions. Finding herself still perplexed about Rocky, she thought she'd go sit at the bar and have a drink before she headed home.

She headed into the bar and bypassed the tables, heading straight for the bar itself and sitting down on one of the stools. She motioned for the bartender to get her a beer. As he went to grab it she turned her attention to her station's last news broadcast of the day that was airing on the TV above her.

"You're Carri Hillard right?" A voice questioned from somewhere along the bar.

Carri sighed. She hadn't wanted to be recognized. She had simply wanted to come have a drink and ponder over the events of the evening. "Yeah." She replied, looking down the bar at the only other person sitting there. She watched as he stood up and moved next to her. Hopefully he was just there to ask for an autograph or a picture or something.

"Zack Taylor." He said as he extended his hand to her. Carri gave him a slight smile as she shook it. She recognized him when he introduced himself. He was a councilman from Los Angeles. Pretty clean for a politician as far as she knew. She hoped he wasn't trying to get her to push some sort of agenda for him on the news. She started thinking about how this was not going to be short as he spoke again. "I believe you're dating a friend of mine."

That certainly wasn't the direction she thought this conversation was going. "Rocky?" She questioned, watching as he nodded his head. She found herself somewhat amused. Rocky's friends seemed to be coming out of the woodwork that night. She supposed she'd have to start introducing him to her friends. Although he had met Randy. That was pretty much it.

She didn't really have a lot of friends. It wasn't that she didn't want to make friends. She supposed she could use work is an excuse but although she was focused and driven and worked the hell out of her stories, she still found time for other things such as her new boyfriend. What it boiled down to was that some people just couldn't take her personality. Where most would hold their tongues, she would come right out and tell you how it was. She had no plans on changing who she was just to make friends and a lot of people didn't like her brutal honesty, especially women.

She pushed that thought out of her head as she focused on the guy in front of her. "We're dating." She wasn't sure if his earlier remark was a statement or a question so she figured she'd answer it. "At least I think so. We had a great night tonight but then he bolted as soon as his pager went off. He said it was something to do with work. A girl's gotta wonder if there's something wrong with him or maybe if it's her."

Zack chuckled as his mind was racing. If Jason had run off to answer the ranger's call it was likely that Rocky had as well. Hopefully he could quickly brush any suspicion away. "Trust me there's nothing wrong with you." He said looking her over and giving her a smile. "And I know Rocky, there's nothing wrong with him either. That's just the way he is, always helping out. If one of his schools needed him he'd be off in a heartbeat."

Carri noticed him checking her out and couldn't help but wonder if he was like that with all the girls. Although the way he looked at her had made a good point. She'd guys throw them-selves at her before; she doubted she was the problem. She hoped Zack was right and that he was just helping out. She wasn't going to go all paranoid on Rocky but that didn't mean she wouldn't keep an eye on him either. She hoped she was just overreacting. She really liked Rocky, maybe she was just looking for something off so she could end it before she got too involved and he broke her heart. But she didn't think it was her heart pulling at her, she thought it was her instinct as a reporter telling her not to completely dismiss the situation.

"I guess you're right." Was what she decided to finally reply with. She couldn't worry about it right now. One time might be a work emergency. They would continue to date and she would continue to enjoy herself unless something more concrete came up that she would have to worry about. "How do you guys know each other?" she asked, deciding it was time to change subjects.

"We went to high school together." Zack replied with a smile. Really he didn't know Rocky all that well. Their time at Angel Grove didn't overlap much as he was off to the Peace Conferences. He had hung out with him a couple of times since then when the former rangers were hanging out.

"That's cool." She said, silently thinking about how it was nice that Rocky still had his friends from high school. Once she'd gotten free of her prep school prison, she'd run from all the so called "friends" she had made as though they had Ebola. Perhaps if she had gone to public school like she wanted things would have gone differently. Of course she was a pain to her mother while she was in private schools and when she campaigned to her mother to go to the public high school she managed to get herself thrown into the prep school. And if she had to go back and do it all over again, she wouldn't change the way she was.

Before she could say anything she caught a glimpse of the television monitor, where they were reporting on some Power Rangers action that was apparently winding down. "Shit." She swore as she grabbed her phone, only to be irritated that there were no missed calls. "How am I supposed to run the story if they don't call." She muttered to herself.

Zack followed her gaze to the television and saw the grainy footage that had been shot from a helicopter at a distance. It was dark and hard to see, but from what he could tell their Command Center was under attack. It looked as though they had everything wrapped up though. "You did an amazing piece earlier." Zack pointed out in an attempt to make her feel better. "And this looks in the middle of nowhere. They didn't get a good shot and you probably wouldn't have gotten there in time."

"Yeah." She mumbled, irritated that she'd missed the story. He was probably right but that didn't make her feel much better.

"Hey." A voice called from behind them.

Carri turned to see the man she had met earlier in the evening. "Good to see you again." She said with a smile. She was curious about Rocky's friend but she hadn't expected to see him again tonight.

"Good to see you too." Jason said, trying to appear more casual than he felt. He just finished up with the rangers and she was the last person he thought he'd see. He assumed Zack had picked up a girl while he was gone. He never would have thought he would have been joined by Carri.

"What took you so long?" Zack questioned, wondering after he said it if it was the right thing to ask. He knew where he had been but he wasn't sure how he'd answer the question with Carri sitting there.

"That was Tommy on the phone." Jason said, grabbing his now warm beer that had been waiting for him while he was fighting and sitting down beside Carri. He didn't know why he chose to put her in the middle. He supposed he was still curious about her. "Kim got worse. But she saw Dr. Cranston and he thinks she'll make a full recovery." He hoped Zack got what he was trying to say.

"Oh man." Zack said, assuming that if Kim had to see Billy she had more than just a case of the flu. "How's Oliver holding up?"

"As good as can be expected. You know how he is with Kim." Jason replied, watching as Zack nodded. Zack remembered Tommy's protectiveness over her just as well as Jason did.

"Wait a second. Would Oliver be the Tommy on the phone?" Carri questioned, looking from one man to the other. Jason gave her a nod and Carri almost smacked herself for not figuring this out earlier. She was an investigative journalist; she never missed this sort of thing when it was dangled right in front of her. "So then I assume Kim is Kimberly Hart?"

"How did you know that?" Jason questioned, although she was Kat's cousin and he had a suspicion that was how she was making the connection.

"I've met Tommy before. He used to date my cousin." She said as she thought about it. She was smarter than this. She really should have put it all together. She didn't know the last names of most of Kat's friends but there were too many striking similarities between the people Kat spoke of and the people she was meeting. "She talked about you guys all the time. I just never made the connection until now. You," She said gesturing briefly to Jason, "Rocky, some people that I've never met – Adam, Tanya, Aisha, and of course Kim, the girl who broke up Kat and Tommy's relationship." Carri said over dramatically.

"Kat was well out of the picture before Tommy and Kim got back together." Jason said, jumping to Kim's defense. He wasn't going to sit there and listen to Carri talk crap about something she didn't know about.

"Oh please." Carri said rolling her eyes. She didn't think for one second that Kim was the reason they broke up. "Kat was just jealous that Kim was Tommy's first true love. And that Tommy was apparently still interested as he looked at everything he could get his hands on that was about the darling of the Pan-Globals. Kim was an easy person to blame and some of my family may agree with Kat, but I'm not that stupid."

Jason gave her a questioning look. He knew that Tommy didn't think she and Kat were super close but he was surprised that she didn't agree with her cousin on the issue. For the most part Carri had an idea of what Jason was thinking so she elaborated. "What broke them up was the fact that Tommy had his own agenda that involved a fast track to his PhD mixed with a little bit of adventure in his work while Kat wanted to settle down and do the white picket fence thing. This is why her head turned so quickly when Tommy was off on a dig and that loser fiancé of hers showed up."

"Wait, Kat cheated on Tommy?" Jason questioned, somewhat surprised. He knew Tommy had been somewhat suspicious but he never had any proof and nobody in the rangers could ever think that Kat would do something like that.

"I never said she cheated." Carri said, giving him a Cheshire cat like grin. God forbid she ever actually said that Kat cheated. The one time she brought it up to her face there was a huge argument. Kat swore they were only in study groups together. But Carri didn't know of many study groups that ended with two members sleeping in the same bed. It bothered Carri that Kat blamed it all on the former gymnast as opposed to owning up to her indiscretion. But she had voiced her opinion once and had kept her mouth shut on the issue from then on out when she was around her cousin. That was quite a feat for her and she was proud of it.

Jason snorted. She didn't need to say it, the implication was there. He was debating whether or not he should bring that up to Tommy. Although Tommy had more than moved on from Kat and he wasn't sure if it was worth causing a rift in the ranger family.

"You're full of information aren't you?" Zack asked with a grin as he watched Carri take another sip of her beer. He silently agreed with Jason, repeating what she said wasn't worth starting a fight among rangers.

"I'm sure you'd love to know half the stuff I know." Carri said with a wicked grin. "But that would take more than one beer and there's no way I'll let you get me drunk." She enjoyed a beer or two but she was not one to drink herself drunk. She hated being drunk. You lose all control of yourself and then there was the vomiting… it wasn't a position she wanted to be in.

Jason couldn't help but chuckle. She was an interesting character. She was being quite honest with two people she hardly knew. "I'm sure if we sit here long enough you'll tell us."

"I may tell you what's on my mind but you're not charming enough to get me to spill all my secrets." Carri replied. She didn't know what she had that he'd be interested in. She could go on about Kat for hours but she wasn't sure how much he knew or how much he'd care to know. As far as she knew, Kat didn't really keep up with all her former high school friends. Tanya was the only one that she thought she might still talk to. Zack on the other hand, she had hoards of information that he would love given his position in politics. Although most of what she knew made it into her news reports, she still had plenty locked away for later.

Zack laughed out loud. "Watch out." He said looking over at his friend. He turned toward Carri and grinned. "For the record I don't think he's that charming either."

Carri rolled her eyes but she grinned at him and Zack chuckled. Zack thought it was interesting sitting here talking to her, despite the fact that she was trying to unmask the Power Rangers.

"You're just jealous." Jason was quick to point out. As Zack said something along the lines of "whatever", Jason looked over and noticed that Zack's beer was empty and that Carri's was low as well. Deciding he was tired of drinking warm beer, he motioned for the bartender to get them all new drinks. Even though Carri was technically the enemy, it may be interesting to sit there and chat with her some more. Who knows, he may be able to gather some of his own information.

* * *

Once Billy was finished poking and prodding Kim, Tommy teleported them back down to his jeep which was still parked in the alleyway that he left it in. Kim frowned as she climbed into the passenger's seat. They had come up with a lie for her mother. She just hoped she'd believe it.

She sighed as Tommy started the car, thinking about how that wasn't even her biggest concern. Her biggest concern was when she'd be feeling one hundred percent again. Billy had run all of his tests and said that she should make a full recovery. But it was going to be a slow recovery. Her vitals had barely inched up while she was out in battle. Which she was pleasantly surprised about. She thought if anything fighting would have made her worse.

What that meant was she was going to continue to feel as though she had the flu until this poison was completely expelled from her system by Billy's cure. She'd live with it though, at least she didn't die. She was lucky she was different or it would have killed her quickly. Had it been administered to Tommy like Cerlina apparently intended to do he would have been dead within hours. She doubted they would have even noticed the symptoms. He would have been fine while it worked his way through him, then felt a little sick for a while before he died. No real warning, no chance to save him.

Cerlina was certainly getting serious in her attempts to kill her friends. That meant Kim had to get serious in her attempts to stop her. Not that she wasn't being serious before but she wasn't aware that Cerlina needed to be stopped quickly. But now she knew that she was going to have to work harder to obtain her goal, to be sharper and to try to stay one step ahead of Cerlina. Or else… well Kim didn't really want to think about the or else.

The jeep was silent as it pulled back into the apartment complex. Tommy rushed around to the passenger side after he shut the car off but she was already pulling herself out. If he was going to hover over her while she got better it might drive her nuts. But at least she had him here to hover. She hadn't realized how lonely she's been since high school until she found him again.

They walked up to the door and Tommy opened it for her. As soon as it cracked open her mother spun around, jumping up and running to throw her arms around her oldest child. "I was so worried." She said, grateful that Kim was up and moving and seemingly ok. She was so confused. How did she get better so fast? Where did Tommy take her? And why did Tommy just leave her like that.

"I'm fine mom." Kim assured her as she returned the hug. Her mother let go and grabbed her hand, leading her toward the couch to have a seat.

Tommy watched as the women grew silent, Kim's mother looking over her daughter as if she were doing her own examination of her health. He decided if he was going to speak it was now or never. "I'm sorry about earlier. I panicked. I was trying to do what was best. I should've called for an ambulance, or at the very least taken you with me." He had to apologize. Even though he knew he was doing the right thing and he would do it again in a heartbeat. But he didn't want Kim's mother to be upset with him.

"It's ok." Kim's mother replied softly. She had been upset, furious with Tommy for taking her daughter off and not including her, not calling the hospital and doing the proper thing. But she would worry about if she would ever truly forgive her daughter's fiancé later. Right now she was just glad that her daughter was alive, and she was fairly certain she was feeling better than before.

She watched as Kim sniffled and coughed. It was obvious she wasn't fully recovered. Both Kim and Tommy were being awfully quiet and she had to know what was going on. "What happened to you? I know you didn't have time to make it to the hospital. You were in such a horrible state when you left. Now you look better."

"Tommy never made it to the hospital." Kim admitted. This was all part of the lie, the one she was going to feed her mother and pray that it was believable. "He was stopped going down the road by the Power Rangers."

"The Power Rangers?" Molly questioned. This was making no sense at all. "Why would they be concerned with a sick girl?"

"The villain they've been facing, apparently she was trying to poison the citizens of Angel Grove. They cleaned up the poison and have now gotten all of the citizens exposed cured. I was one of the ones exposed. I suppose I was just at the wrong place at the wrong time." Kim explained. It sounded believable. It was the only way to explain how she got really sick so fast then within a few short hours was miraculously better.

Molly said nothing, only thought about the words her daughter spoke. It was frightening to think of citizens being caught up in ranger affairs. She worried about that during Kim's later years in high school. It was one of the reasons she was relieved to move away. "Are you going to be alright?" she finally asked.

"The rangers said I would make a full recovery. It's just going to take time." Kim replied, reaching out to grab her mother's hand and giving what she hoped it was a reassuring squeeze. When Molly had no reply Kim stood. "It has been a long day, I'm going to go get some sleep."

"Ok honey." Her mom said as she gave her a smile.

Tommy walked up behind Kim and escorted her into the bedroom. She collapsed on the bed and sighed. "I always thought being a ranger as an adult meant not having to lie to your parents anymore."

Tommy sat down beside her and started running his fingers through her hair. "Some things never change." He said before leaning down and giving her a kiss on the forehead. She smiled at him and closed her eyes while he continued to stare.

He had almost lost her today. He wouldn't have known what to do without her. She was more a part of his life now than she had ever been. He loved her more than anything, she was his world. The idea of losing her to Cerlina… he could feel the flash of anger flow through them. He knew what he would've done. He would have gone after Cerlina until he could ensure that she would never hurt anyone again.

Kim's snoring pulled him away from those thoughts and back to focusing on her. He didn't have to worry about that. He hadn't lost her, she was here with him. They were going to take care of Cerlina then they were going to get married, spend the rest of their lives together.

Tommy smiled and moved his hand as Kim flopped ungracefully onto her side and the snoring got louder. It was nice to see her getting some sleep. He stood up, deciding he'd leave her to rest. Besides he needed to go see her mother out. He walked toward the door and gave her one last glance, smiling as he exited and shut the door behind him.


	20. A Shift in the Wind

**Disclaimer:** You know the drill. Power Rangers are Disney's. Everyone else is mine.

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"A Shift in the Wind"

Kim headed into the airport on a crisp late November morning with Tommy's arm firmly attached to her waist. That wasn't unusual; Tommy had been clinging on to her since she almost died. She supposed she couldn't blame him. She wasn't stupid; she knew how sick she had gotten.

But she was so much better now and she was hoping he would give her some space. It has been a slow recovery for her. Every day she got a little bit better but there was no miracle. Billy monitored her daily with tests while Tommy watched her like a hawk. Even her mother and stepfather were keeping a close eye on her after what happened.

She was glad that she was sending them home today. They had been worrying over her enough. Thanksgiving had been awkward. They were all making small talk while at the same time staring at her, watching her every move to make sure that she was still getting better and not taking a turn for the worse. And by all she included Tommy, her brother, mother and stepfather. Sophia and Angelique, who had shown up the Monday before Thanksgiving and left the Saturday after, were quick to show concern for their stepsister. Even Charlotte, who had been left out of a lot of the details, had treated her like a porcelain doll.

She supposed there were things for her to be grateful for. First there was the fact that since the attack on Kim and their Command Center, Cerlina had been quiet. Kim didn't think she had hit her that hard and she was afraid that she was a little too quiet, but that was yet to be determined. Second she was grateful that there were people out there who cared that much about her. As if reading her thoughts, Tommy leaned down and kissed her on the head. He has been the most worried about Kim since that night.

He studied her carefully every day, every hour to make sure that nothing was odd or out of place. Anything that seemed strange to him could be a sign that she might be slipping and he took note of it. Billy insisted that after those first crucial few hours the chances were good that she would make a full recovery. But there was still a chance that she wouldn't. Tommy was always keeping an eye out for signs that she wouldn't make a full recovery.

Even Billy thought he was worrying a little too much when he brought his concerns over Kim to the former ranger's attention. Kim looked a little pale today, Kim skipped a meal today. Billy assured him that besides the fact that some of those were normal Kim things, she was still recovering and there might be some things that weren't completely back to normal. If Kim started showing flu symptoms again, that was something he would have to worry about.

Still Tommy was going to worry anyway. This was the woman he was planning on marrying; he wasn't going to let anything happen to her. The only good thing about her sitting at home recovering was that they got to do a lot of wedding planning. Kim's mother thought it would be a good thing to do to pass the time and they had both happily agreed. Tommy spent time sitting with the two women when he wasn't working.

Molly had found herself quite surprised that Tommy had wanted to be so involved with planning the wedding. She was pleased that he had given his input without them having to pull it out of him. That was one of the reasons why she was warming up to Tommy and Kim getting married more than she thought she would.

It had been obvious from all that had happened while she was there that Tommy loved her daughter more than anything. That should be enough for her to accept him as part of the family. But at the same time she still thought of high school Tommy, even though this Tommy, the one who was mature and wise and had a PhD, was nothing like high school Tommy. Old habits die hard, she supposed.

"I'm glad that we could visit with you. We will be back soon." Molly promised as she turned to face her oldest daughter. There was more wedding planning to take care of, she wasn't going to let Kim take care of it all by herself.

"I'm sure I'll see you for the wedding." Kim said with a smile as she wiggled away from Tommy and went to give her mother a hug.

"I plan on being here well before the wedding." Her mother replied as she returned the hug.

Kim smiled and nodded before glancing past her mother and catching sight of Andre, who was standing with Charlotte at the ticket counter. She thought about her family and how much she loved them. It reminded her of something that had been bothering her since she found out her mother was coming here. Something she wanted to say, but she hadn't been quite sure how to approach the subject.

The visit had been without incident, or at least without anything bad happing to the rest of her family. That kept her from feeling as though she needed to tell the truth. But it didn't keep her from wanting to issue a warning. "Mom, before you go I want you to know something."

"What is it sweetie?" her mother questioned as Tommy folded his arms across his chest and looked at his fiancé curiously. She couldn't help but wonder what it was that her daughter wanted to say. Especially what she could say that would have Tommy giving her a look that was a mix of curiosity, anxiety and anger.

"Be careful." Kim spoke, figuring that was a good phrase to start with. Before her mother could smile and laugh her off she continued. "More than just watch out for guys in dark ally's careful. I don't want anything to happen to you. If anything strange or out of the ordinary happens I want you to call me. I don't care how small it is, I need to know."

Tommy lost some of the tension he hadn't realized he was holding. He thought Kim was going to mention Cerlina. He knew she had been wrestling with what to say to her mother, if she should say anything at all. It was difficult to put her on edge like that but there was a good chance Cerlina would go after her, and if she did Kim would want to know.

Molly looked at her daughter, unsure of how to respond. She was hoping that she had just imagined her daughter's odd behavior since she had been in town but now this. Perhaps she was still slightly shook up from being sick. At least she hoped that was all it was. "You don't need to worry about me."

"Please mom." Kim said softly, watching as her mother didn't seem as though she was taking her seriously. "If anything happens you have to call me right away. It's important to me." Kim's demeanor switched and it was obvious to Tommy her last words were spoken as a red, not as a daughter.

Molly was at a loss as her husband and Charlotte approached them. "Everything is set, we are ready to go." Andre said as he smiled and put his arm around his wife.

"It was good to see you." Kim said, going to give her stepfather a hug while her words hopefully sunk in with her mother.

"It was a pleasure spending time with you and your future husband." Andre replied. He returned Kim's hug and turned to shake Tommy's hand while Kim went to say her goodbye's to Charlotte.

She gave her half sister a huge bear hug before letting her go. Charlotte walked over toward Tommy, who leaned down and gave her a hug as well. Much to Tommy's surprise, Charlotte gave him a peck on the cheek. "You'll have to come visit me sometime." Charlotte said, batting her eyelashes as he stood.

Tommy scooted toward Kim and put an arm around her shoulder. "We will." Tommy said as he gave Kim a squeeze. He hoped Charlotte got the message. Besides the fact that she was way too young for him to even consider, he was firmly with her big sister and no amount of batting would change that.

"We'll talk soon." Molly said as she looked her daughter over. She planned on trying to keep tabs on her to make sure the odd behavior stopped and she was fully recovered.

"Call me when you land." Kim replied with a smile. She hoped her mother had listened to her, that she wouldn't hesitate to pick up the phone if anything happened.

"But of course." Andre replied as he took Charlotte's hand in his. "We need to get through security or we will miss our plane."

One final round of goodbyes was exchanged before the Gerard's headed off to their first security checkpoint. Kim watched as her family headed out of sight. Once she was convinced they were gone she sighed and looked up toward Tommy. "Let's go home." She said simply as she turned and headed for the exit.

* * *

Cerlina returned to her palace after spending quite a bit of time away. She had to recuperate after that last battle with Kimmie and she was frustrated. She needed to seek advice and take some time to herself to get her head on straight. After returning to the world she considered home to regain her strength, she spent a few days with Zarkan, revisiting some of her training and getting some words of wisdom.

Afterwards she spent the rest of her time meditating in the jungles on a world with demons so cruel that even in their prime evil warlords such as Master Vile tended to steer clear. She enjoyed her time spent there. She got the quiet time she needed to think and reflect on which direction her battle was going. Plus she got the opportunity to put her skills and anger to use, killing demons as they stumbled across her location.

She was feeling quite refreshed and now she had a clear plan of action as to how to refocus and get back to business. Killing Tommy hadn't worked. Not only did Tommy not die, but his girlfriend who drank the poison had been cured. Sure that was a huge setback, but she was over it now. She was going to demolish the ranger's spirits first, and then she could take them out.

With authority she marched into the main room, watching as Malizor quickly vacated her chair. She gave him a nod as she took her seat. Once she was situated she turned toward him. "I assume everything went well?"

Malizor gave her a slight nod. "Kimberly is almost completely recovered. Other than that there has been no major news with the rangers." He had been left in charge during Cerlina's absence. He had been charged with making sure her army continued to run smoothly and remain firmly under her control as well as keep an eye on the rangers. It had been an easy task. The rangers weren't difficult to keep an eye on and Cerlina's army always ran smoothly and would remain loyal to the end.

"Good. I'd hate for Kimmie to use that disease as an excuse when I start taking things from her." Cerlina replied with a smile. She was ready to put her plan into motion. This time she wasn't going to fail.

"What are we going to do?" Malizor questioned. He was glad she was back. She had told him to leave the rangers be while she was gone. He believed that they had left them alone long enough. It was time to attack.

"Kimmie always spoke of fond memories of a little place called the Youth Center." Cerlina said, referencing her days of working closely with the red ranger on Phaedos. Kim referenced the Youth Center when she talked about first becoming a ranger, hanging out with her friends and even her gymnastics career. It gave Kimmie such warm fuzzy feelings that it has to go. "And a little birdie told me that the Youth Center was recently acquired by its original owner, remodeled and reopened." Rizikar was her little birdie. He had used their computer system a few weeks ago to hack into Earth's. He came up with some good information that she had put on hold as at the time she thought Kimmie was dying.

"So we are going to destroy this Youth Center?" Malizor asked. It was going back to the original plan and he liked it. Destroy the world piece by piece until Kim was the only thing left in it. Then have their fun with her.

"Yes but we can't just march down there and destroy it. Kim's too smart for that." Cerlina replied. She learned her lesson with the high school. Those rangers were good and there was no way they could flat out attack it without them interfering and possibly ruining her plans again.

Malizor nodded. He agreed, the direct approach was getting them nowhere. "Perhaps we can distract the rangers and destroy the building before they get a chance to interfere."

"Something like that." Cerlina replied. She had spent a lot of time thinking this one through and she thought she had something that was foolproof. "Gather Cratus. Have him start to work on explosives. He will plant them underneath the Youth Center. I want something that will send the building up into spectacular pieces for Kimmie."

It was going to be so much fun she was inclined to go watch herself. She knew that her presence would put Kimmie on edge though and she didn't want to tip her off. She was inclined to slip in and watch from the sidelines so she could congratulate her team on a job well done and see the look on Kimmie's face when her precious Youth Center was destroyed.

"And for the distraction?" Malizor questioned. He was enjoying this plan already.

"Have Finkus put together a monster. Something dreadful with an explosive personality. You will take the monster along with Rizikar and Cryobots down to the Youth Center to do battle." Cerlina quickly explained. This was going to be good.

Malizor found himself feeling quite confused. It didn't make any sense to bring the rangers that close to the Youth Center. "I don't understand. Shouldn't we keep the rangers away from Cratus so that he may do his job?"

"No we want to bring them to the action." Cerlina replied with a smile. Malizor didn't look convinced so she elaborated. "First of all I want Kimmie to have a front row seat. Second there's a good chance that Willie's little scanners will pick up a disturbance at the Youth Center. If they think it's your team trying to destroy the place, they won't know to look for Cratus. The building will blow before they can figure out what's going on."

Malizor smiled and nodded. It made quite a bit of sense. Cerlina smiled at him. "Any more questions?" she asked, watching as he shook his head no. "Good. I'd like to put this in motion shortly so hurry and get started."

With a quick nod Malizor took off. Cerlina smiled at her first in command as he left. This was the most brilliant idea she'd had yet. Of course this particular plan would only work once, but it would be worth it to see the look on Kimmie's face as the place that was the center of her happy teenaged memories was blown to bits.

* * *

Rocky awoke that morning a bit later than he would like. He scooted quietly out of the bed and tiptoed toward the bedroom door, taking a glance at the woman that he had been sleeping next to before heading out into the unfamiliar condo.

He headed toward the kitchen and poked around until he found coffee. He had half a mind to leave, to go to his school and forget this ever happened. But he wasn't that kind of guy. He didn't do this sort of thing often but when it happened he wasn't one to pick up and leave without a trace either.

With a sigh he put the coffee into the pot and hit start before going over to sit at the kitchen table. He supposed he didn't really want to forget this happened. After all the sex had been amazing. It had been a while since he had been with a woman. He and Marie had been separated for a year before their divorce a few months ago. But even when they were together the sex was only ok. He didn't remember much before her but he was a lot younger then and he didn't think he could compare.

So the sex was definitely not the problem. And it wasn't as though he didn't have feelings for her. The feelings were developing quickly. That made him somewhat uncomfortable, got his guilty conscious nipping at him. This was never supposed to be a feelings job. This was a spy job, a gathering intel job. And yet here he was falling for the enemy.

Ever since the first time they kissed the feelings had been taking over, not allowing him to think rationally anymore. Whether or not he wanted this, whether or not it was a good idea, all that was going out the window. Good idea or not, ready for it or not, they were forming a real relationship. He couldn't deny what was going on and now he was at a real loss over what to do.

He had a few options to explore. The first was to keep things at the status quo. To continue to date Carri and get information from Carri and try to bottle his feelings back up and forget they are there. He didn't think that would work. After all, that was what he had tried so hard to do before and it landed him in bed with her. So then he could forget this ever happened. Cut ties with her completely, decline to be around during her scheduled class time and try to move on.

But that wouldn't work either. Tommy would be furious if he abandoned the operation like that. He was the only one on the team with an in with Carri. Although apparently the night Kim got sick Jason, Zack and Carri spent a long, interesting night at the bar. He couldn't just pawn her off on anybody else though. Besides he wouldn't do that to her. There was too much there between both of them that he had to acknowledge and he couldn't just cast her aside.

Which left him with a third option and that was to forget about everything that was holding him back, the divorce he just had, the fact that he was spying on her, the fact that he hadn't been looking for anything, and just go for it. Let the relationship progress like it should and let his feelings go like they are. The way he felt about her now he could do that. But still something kept nipping at him, confusing him, telling him not to go for it and he just didn't know what to do.

He needed advice. But he wasn't sure who he could go to. The most obvious choice was to talk to the other male rangers. Which he probably would do. But he didn't want to tell them everything. He felt like he couldn't. He was never supposed to let it go this far. He didn't want them to know he had slept with her.

He would seek advice from them but he wouldn't explain everything. Of course that would probably mean that the advice wouldn't be what he needed. He needed to go to another source. An outside source, someone who wasn't going to judge the situation and would give him honest advice. The problem was that the only people he could think of were former rangers and he wasn't sure any of them would understand.

He chuckled to himself as he thought about the magazine he occasionally read. The male advice columnist was brutally honest and one of the nation's best. He wasn't sure if he could bring himself to write to an advice columnist. But he certainly would be non bias and give him a true opinion. And he didn't have to reveal any real names or locations. Nobody would know it was him.

With a sigh he continued to debate with himself over what to do. The coffee pot sputtering to a stop pulled him out of his thoughts. Which was just as well because it was at that time that Carri emerged from the bedroom.

She had smelled the coffee and had decided it was time to get out of bed. When she woke up without Rocky beside her she had initially assumed that he had taken off without so much as leaving a note. It would be her luck. Have a night of great sex then find out the guy is a jerk. She thought she had chosen better than that this time.

This was why she was thrilled to walk out into the kitchen to realize that she hadn't set the coffeepot, that Rocky had gotten up before her and decided to make coffee. "You know how to treat a girl right." She said with a grin as she walked over and poured herself a cup.

"With coffee?" Rocky questioned as he stood and walked over to get some of his own. He wasn't quite sure if she was referring to the coffee or the previous night.

Carri moved aside to get cream and sugar as Rocky started to pour himself a cup. "Yeah the coffee. Unless you did something else for me this morning that I don't know about." She said as she grinned wickedly at him.

"Nope. Just the coffee." Rocky couldn't help but wonder how many of the guys who had stayed here had actually made her coffee in the morning. She seemed quite impressed by the gesture.

She smiled as she took her cup and sat down at the kitchen table. Coffee was more than enough. "So do you have to work this afternoon?" she questioned as she watched him make his coffee. She didn't want to throw him out. But she did have to meet Randy soon to do work and he was already going to pester her about sleeping with Rocky, she wasn't going to add Rocky making her late to the list.

"Yeah, I have to be there for class this afternoon. You?" He asked. He was wondering if she was asking him because she wanted him to stay. He hoped not. He needed to go home, to relax a bit before work.

"I'm meeting Randy in a bit. We've got a story we're working on." Two stories actually. The first one was political. She had a potentially huge story on her hands and she was anxious work some of her sources and pull some more information.

The second thing she was working on was a project she promised Randy she'd get back to. She was digging to find out who Arnold is; after all he is the quite famous men's advice columnist. Randy had been begging her for that story for ages. It irked her; Arnold was harder to figure out than the Power Rangers. She had a feeling that the more famous he got the more closely the secret became guarded. She thought she was close once but then it was as though the door slammed shut in her face and she's been working on a way back in ever since. She hoped it was worth it and that Randy would have the chemistry he desired when he finally got to meet Arnold.

Of course she really wanted to work on her Power Rangers story. But she had gotten a lecture the previous week about her other stories slipping and she was asked to split her work among other stories. She wasn't too thrilled with the suggestion, after all on the days of attacks their news broadcast ratings doubled, soaring past the competitors as people wanted to see what she uncovered. No other reporter dared to get as close as she did or do what she did. But with the lack of action lately she quit looking as hard into the Power Rangers identities and played with some other stories. She was still giving the Power Rangers enough of her time, but her boss didn't need to know that.

"Good. Because I'll probably have to get out of here soon and we can both get ready for work." Rocky said as he took a huge sip of his coffee. It sounded like a good way to slip out; at least he thought it did.

"Yeah. I'm probably going to jump in the shower after coffee so you can hang or let yourself out or whatever." Carri replied. She was trying to make it an open invitation to join her but even after last night she didn't think he would. That wasn't his style.

"I'll probably just head home so I can get ready myself." Rocky replied, relived that he could exit and clear his head for a while.

"That's fine." Carri said, somewhat disappointed he didn't want to stay for a shower but she quickly brushed it off. "We'll just talk later then."

"Right." Rocky said with a smile. He was looking forward to hearing from her later. With a sigh he looked down into his coffee cup. His feelings were going all over the map when he was with her. He was somewhat relieved that after he finished his coffee, it was time to go home.

* * *

As the morning was giving away to the afternoon, Karone sat in the Command Center with Zhane by her side working hard to research what they could do to get rid of Cerlina. What she really wished they could do is kill her and be done with it, but she was powerful and it wasn't going to be that easy. Finding something that would actually work was a slow process. Billy was letting her use the facilities and she was hoping to find something she could use as a good starting point, something she could take home with her and use it to find some answers.

Although slow and at times frustrating, her search was well worth it. This was going to be the present she was giving her unborn niece or nephew. To come into the world with one less threat, one less intergalactic tyrant out there for that child to grow up with. This was also for Andros, who had been seriously fretting since Kim almost died. If Cerlina could get to Kim like that Andros feared for the fate of the world.

She tried to reassure her brother but they both knew he was right. Cerlina was dangerous, and if she started killing the rangers the chances were she'd take down the entire planet, killing everyone and everything to get her revenge on Kim.

Pausing Karone looked over at Zhane and smiled. Having him here was helpful. He knew a lot about the workings of the galaxy. Not as much as her seeing as how she'd been firmly rooted on both sides of the line but he was still helpful. She began to suggest a tweak to their search when the Command Center's alarms went off.

Billy came rushing into the main room to examine the disturbance. His eyes widened when he saw where they were. He wouldn't let them get away with this. "They're attacking the Youth Center. You guys go down, I'll alert the others."

"Right." Zhane spoke quickly as he maneuvered by Karone's side. The two of them quickly morphed and teleported down to the scene.

"Hold it right there!" Karone yelled calling for her weapon as the monster went to attack the Youth Center.

"Just two?" Malizor questioned as he looked over the pink and green rangers. He seriously doubted that Kim would decline to show. At least he hoped not, Cerlina would be highly disappointed if the object of her tirade wasn't there.

"You wouldn't get that lucky." Jason said as he teleported in with Rocky right behind him. First the school, then the Youth Center. They really were serious about destroying everything near and dear to Kim.

"Let's get these creeps away from the Youth Center." Kim said as she and Tommy teleported in. She had been grateful for the silence. She wondered if the time was spent plotting the destruction of the Youth Center. Whatever they were thinking about, she was going to have to put a swift end to it.

"Not in this lifetime." Malizor replied, pleased that the team's leader had shown. He turned toward the monster. "Thunderblast, if you will."

The monster, named for his loud missile attack, turned his focus toward the rangers. "With pleasure." He said. Lifting his hands he shot missiles in their direction, causing them to cover their ears as they were strewn across the battlefield.

The rangers stood quickly and called for their weapons, each of them running into battle and trying to keep the small army away from the Youth Center. Rocky ran and took on the first opponent he came to, Rizikar. Jason joined him and the duo found themselves on the outskirts of the fight. He supposed that was the only reason he noticed Carri and her cameraman inching closer and closer toward the battle.

He let out a groan as he gave Rizikar a hit. He seriously doubted this was the story she'd gone off to work on. After all, how could she anticipate an attack? Most likely she had been close by when the monster alarms went off. And as usual she was ready to get as close as she could and film. He was just thankful that he had been at his place and not hers when he got the page.

Jason heard Rocky groan and followed his line of sight. "What did you expect?" He said simply as he went to focus on the battle. It was obvious she wasn't going to give up. They'd just have to play it smart.

While Rocky and Jason were engaging Rizikar, Kim and Tommy were busy trying to get rid of Thunderblast. They were taking the only approach that they could, and that was a pattern of duck, weave, hit. It was the only way to avoid taking a missile to the chest. Of course that meant that the missiles were going all sorts of other places.

"Keep him away from the Youth Center." Tommy called out to Kim. It was probably quite the obvious statement, but at least two of the missiles had nicked the building and had done some damage. Nothing that wasn't repairable, but from what he had heard Ernie hadn't had the place reopened for long and he hated that there was damage being done at all.

"I'll try." Kim said with a hint of irritation as she kicked Thunderblast so that he would turn toward her to fire. He did and she ducked, his missile sending someone's beat up Taurus into flames. She watched Tommy duck as Thunderblast turned his attention toward him.

Taking the second she had she quickly surveyed the rest of the field. Jason and Rocky seemed to be doing well and Zhane and Karone were handling Malizor to the best of their ability. He was tough; she always worried about fighting against Malizor. And of course the Cryobots were hanging around to get their shot in. Fortunately for them, Thunderblast was helping take some of the Cryobots out with a few stray missiles.

Kim reached for her sword and jumped in between Thunderblast and the Youth Center. She issued a few good hits that pushed him back before she hit him once to spin him away from the building. A missile went off and she watched as parts of at least three Cryobots scattered through the air. She couldn't help but think about how lucky they were that their suits protected them better than that.

Tommy tore Thunderblast's attention away from her once more, pulling him further away from the Youth Center. As she was about to migrate away from the building herself, Cratus appeared next to her out of nowhere.

"What do you want?" she asked as a grin spread slowly across his face. This couldn't be good.

"Boom." Cratus replied simply.

Before Kim had a chance to react she heard a noise. Spinning around she sucked in her breath as she realized that the noise was coming from the foundations of the Youth Center. She felt as though she was frozen, forced to watch as the horrific scene unfolded in front of her. There was nothing she could do, nothing any of them could do as the building exploded chunks of what used to be the Youth Center flying up and out farther than she would have ever thought possible.

She felt as though someone knocked the wind out of her and she had to put her hands on her knees to steady herself. She heard clapping and she looked up as Cerlina appeared from the sidelines. "You." Kim spat, forcing herself to stand.

Cerlina smiled devilishly. This was almost as good as she had hoped. The only thing that would have made it better is if she had actually been able to see the look on Kimmie's face. But the body language was good enough.

"I thought you might appreciate my little present." She said as she glanced around. She noticed the television reporter and the camera so she turned to look at it as she spoke. Why not let Earth know exactly who it was that was going to kill them. "It took some refocusing on my part to come up with this but I thought it went pretty well."

"You'll pay for this." Kim snarled, gripping her fingers around her sword. She was ready to slice her down right then and there.

Cerlina let out a laugh. "Not likely." She said. If Kimmie was going to be able to touch her she would have done it by now. "No, this is how it's going to go down. I'm going to keep destroying things piece by piece, watching as you pathetic rangers can't stop me. It's going to be fun."

Cerlina looked out over all the rangers who were staring at her. She could almost feel the hatred they were giving off through their helmets. She liked it. It was the fuel she needed to go home and take time to properly plan the next attack. She glanced at Thunderblast and gave him a slight nod. "See what you can do to dispose of them."

With that Cerlina was gone and Kim no longer had her to focus her anger on. Instead she unleashed her fury on the monster that Cerlina had left to kill them. She blocked the surrounding noise out and focused on the creature in front of her. She didn't hear the other rangers cries, she didn't hear them when they maneuvered to help her. She focused on fighting this thing fast and hard so she could make it disappear.

She couldn't tell you when Cratus took off or when Jason and Rocky sent Rizikar packing. She hadn't even been aware that Malizor had eventually left the battlefield as well, thinking that for Thunderblast the rangers were an easy opponent. She just fought to take out the monster.

Eventually though her duty as a red kicked in. This was a team, they were all upset and they had to destroy this together then deal with the aftermath of the day's events. With a little bit of work they got a shot off with the cannon. Thunderblast did the predictable thing and after a quick zord battle they were all heading out.

* * *

After meeting at the Command Center for several hours, Kim and Tommy found themselves curled up with each other on their couch. Both were distraught by the events of the afternoon and both had a lot they were thinking about as they mindlessly watched the television, waiting for the evening news to see how Carri's report was going to run.

There was a lot to process and discuss about what had happened that day. The most obvious was the property damage. Thunderblast's missiles had done a number to several of the surrounding vehicles and had damaged some of the landscape nearby. Then of course there was the destruction of the Youth Center, which had devastated the rangers whose high school memories were locked in that place.

Sure the building had changed hands over the years, and had been renovated on multiple occasions. But Ernie, the original owner, returned to Angel Grove this past year to find that the building that had been the Youth Center but was now a failing teenaged disco. The disco owners were eager to sell and Ernie purchased the property and reopened his gym and juice bar. It hadn't been exactly the same as they once knew it, but it was close enough. It was the Youth Center again, their Youth Center, and Cerlina had targeted it because of her.

Perhaps they didn't visit it anymore as they had when they were young, but it was still a treasure lost to them forever. She supposed Ernie could rebuild, but she doubted he would want to. She imagined he'd get an insurance payout as long as he had monster coverage. The sad thing was only half the citizens in Angel Grove put the monster addition on their insurance. It sent premiums through the roof during the time of an attack. They knew what could happen but some of them for financial reasons took their chances.

The worst part of the attack wasn't the property damage; it was the people who were injured. Fortunately everyone had made it out of the building as when the attack on the Youth Center started the patrons fled out of the back exit. What caused all the injuries was the explosion. The morphed rangers and those closest to the scene pretty much came out unharmed. The explosion had been designed to scatter the pieces up and away, falling on those who had made a good run for it.

As far as she knew there were only two serious injuries, and those two were in the ICU, status unknown. She supposed that was something to be thankful for. There were several reports of bone damage, but as far as she knew those patients would survive. Some of them were getting casts and sent home while others would require surgery. The rest of the injuries were cuts and bruises, some requiring stitches but most getting a thorough cleaning and a bandage before sending the patient home.

At the end of the day everyone from the rangers to the general public were upset and worried. No one knew what to expect, no one knew what was going to happen next. There was no way to figure out what the next target would be or how the attack would come about. Cerlina wouldn't use the same tactic twice, she wasn't stupid she knew there was no way Kim would fall for it again. That meant that every time they went into a fight they had to be extra careful, searching everything to see if Cerlina got to another place Kim cared about, if she had found away to destroy something else.

It was frustrating; they weren't going to have any idea what to look for. They were going to have to put their heads down and try their best. She wasn't completely sure that would be good enough, only time would tell.

Billy was already on it, trying to figure out anything to help them detect secret attacks in the future. Kim had to hope that he would come up with something. In the meantime she knew what she had to do.

Getting serious wasn't working. Staying one step ahead of Cerlina wasn't working. She had been working on it ever since Cerlina poisoned her and it obviously hadn't gotten her very far. She couldn't afford to think defensively anymore. No more worrying about stopping her from obtaining her goal. She'd leave stopping her up to Billy. He could worry about how to thwart each attempt.

In order to save Angel Grove, her friends, her planet, Kim was going to have to go on the offensive. Stopping her was putting a band-aid on the problem. She wasn't simply going to leave because Kim stopped her a few times. She was a fierce warrior and she was determined to get her revenge, revenge that she had been thinking about ever since they trained together on Phaedos. Nothing was going to stop her. Kim's only option was to kill her, or to find some other way to rid the universe from Cerlina. That was what she was going to have to figure out how to do if her planet and its people were to remain safe.

Kim refocused her attention when she heard the start of the news. She watched intently, noticing that they were the top story. That was no surprise, Carri had gotten damn good coverage of the day's events. She watched as Carri appeared and told the viewers how she was in the middle of the story and how the Power Rangers tried their hardest to save the day and managed to destroy the monster but that the city suffered a loss.

Carri went on to say that she had an exclusive, and that this was the only place that the viewing public could see an up close, accurate version of the story with her commentating, including some words from the woman leading the attack. With one last lead in statement, they cut to the footage from earlier. Kim sighed. She wasn't sure if she wanted to revisit it but she supposed it would be good for her. It would keep her focused, remind her of her goal. Remind her that the only way Earth was ever going to be safe was if she took Cerlina out of existence, permanently.


	21. Bombs Away

**Disclaimer:** Everyone appearing on the Power Rangers are still Disney's, all other characters are mine.

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"Bombs Away"

Billy found himself walking down the streets of Angel Grove on a cool mid December afternoon, enjoying the fresh air on his face. He did not get out much. However, he had a feeling that was all about to change. From this day forward, his life on Earth was taking a different turn.

His first two intergalactic inventions were going to be able to be used on Earth soon. He was opening up technology for the planet that he came from. The company that bought them was amazed and grateful for what he brought to the table. They expected stocks to fly though the roof once they started putting his inventions to use.

They were surprised that this brilliance came from a man who never attended college. However, they had been able to look past that. He was a genius, one that was currently freelancing for whatever company was the highest bidder.

With their potential profits increase the heads of the corporation had become greedy. Billy suspected they had thought about this long before he came into the room. After all, no company president would randomly offer someone the job as head of research and development.

Billy was a bit taken back. He had thought he would sell his inventions to who he deemed fit and work for himself. However, despite the fact that this company did not want to share his talents they were actually good people. He had done plenty of research on the group before he decided to sell his first two inventions to them. That was probably why he actually considered the idea before they detailed the offer.

If you had asked him before he would have never thought he would be working for someone. Nevertheless, this job was perfect for him. He would be the head of research and development, answering only to the board. He would be essentially on his own, which would allow him to continue to help the rangers without worrying about work. In addition, there was the steady paycheck. He had gotten a lot of money for selling his two inventions but that was a long process. This way he was getting guaranteed income. Plus there would be a sizable bonus for every usable invention he came up with. And Billy had plenty of ideas.

Therefore, after internal debate, Billy agreed to take the job. He would start officially at the first of the year, but they had a few things for him to do between now and then. He was not sure how much he was going to get paid between now and then, but it did not matter as they had paid him his asking price for his inventions. He had called a realtor as soon as he got out of the meeting. He was going to officially start his life in Angel Grove as an adult.

That was worth a celebration. That was why he was heading toward one of downtown Angel Grove's nicest restaurants for lunch. He walked into the door and was greeted by the hostess. He hated saying that he only had one person. Who came and celebrated by themselves? However, he didn't want to bother the others at the moment. Besides, it would be nice.

As he walked through the restaurant, he noticed a petite Asian woman sitting at a table by herself as a waiter poured her a glass of wine. Billy stopped short to look at her. "Trini?" he questioned.

Her eyes lit up as she glanced up and saw one of her closest friends. "Billy!" she exclaimed, jumping out of her chair to give a friend a hug. She was thrilled to see him. It was what she needed right now.

"How are you?" Billy asked as he released his embrace. It had been a long time since he had seen her but in a way it felt as though they never were apart.

"I'm doing well." Trini said as she smiled at him. She was doing well enough anyway. "How are you?"

"I'm fine." Billy replied as he smiled back.

Trini looked as the woman who was leading him through the restaurant glared at her. "We'll have to catch up sometime. I don't want to interrupt your lunch."

"It's no interruption." Billy quickly replied. Seeing Trini here was actually a welcomed surprise. "It's a table for one."

"Sit with me." Trini said quickly. She hadn't planned to speak to any of the former rangers yet but maybe that was just what she needed. "I'm by myself as well."

"Alright." Billy replied. He didn't even have to think about the answer to that invitation as Trini led him over to her table. Trini resumed her seat and Billy sat across from her, watching as Trini's waiter poured him a glass of wine as well.

The waiter left them to look at the menu and Billy took a sip of wine before turning toward Trini. "How long have you been in Angel Grove?"

"Since yesterday." Trini replied. She was debating between spitting everything out or taking it slowly. She really didn't know how to say it. Things were going on in her life that she was not proud of but she was glad that they had happened. "I was going to call you guys sometime. However, I just got all my stuff down here yesterday and got settled into a new townhome. In addition, I spent this morning at the courthouse getting things ready so I could start hearing cases next week. Then I came to lunch to celebrate."

Billy looked somewhat perplexed. As far as he knew, Trini was happily working as a judge in San Diego. Perhaps her husband got a job out here. However, he can't believe that she would not have called to tell them she was moving home. "Celebrating what?"

"Divorce." Trini said simply. It was why she moved back to Angel Grove. She was lucky that there was an opening for a judge down here. She finished out her cases back home and moved this way as soon as possible.

"Trini I'm sorry." Billy said softly. He knew what it was like to leave the person you are with and eventually come back home.

"Thank you but you don't have to be sorry." Trini said with a smile. She was sorry at first but she had gotten over it. Her future ex-husband was a jerk. She should have known. Her mother warned her not to marry a lawyer. But he had always been so kind to her when they first met, and they had so much fun. Things moved quickly between them and within a year, they were married. She thought that this was her true love and they would be married forever.

Their marriage had lasted a while, but then just as quickly as their romance got started it ended. "I went to surprise him one day during work and when I walked into his office he had his secretary on the edge of the desk and, well, let's just say I caught him with his pants down."

Billy shook his head. He never wanted to harm another human before so much as he wanted to harm Trini's scum ex-husband. How could he cheat on her? Trini was wonderful, any man would be lucky to get the opportunity to be with her. Billy tried not to sound angry as he continued. "So you left him?"

"Yes. I went to stay with a friend of mine while I officially separated from him. Then applied for the job up here. That was almost a month ago." Trini replied. She could tell Billy was upset. He always cared about her. However, he shouldn't worry. Her ex was a jerk and she was just glad he was going to be out of her life. "So this time next year we'll be divorced. Meanwhile I get to come back to Angel Grove and start over. This is really why I'm celebrating."

"I'm glad you're ok." Billy said with a smile. Trini gave him a reassuring smile back as she nodded. "I'm celebrating too. I am going to settle back in Angel Grove. I don't have anything to go back to on Aquitar. My ex and I." Billy stopped and simply shook his head. Trini nodded, she understood without him saying anything. "I got a job offer this morning. And I'm looking for a house."

Trini smiled. They were both starting fresh in Angel Grove. It was going to be nice to be here with her friends again, with Billy again. She lifted up her wine glass. "Here's to starting over in Angel Grove."

"To Angel Grove." Billy said as he lifted his glass and toasted. Deciding to stay here may just turn out to be the best decision he has ever made.

* * *

Stepping out of his car, Rocky headed down the sidewalk to go grab a late lunch with Jason at a small café. Although he wanted to talk to Jason, he hoped that lunch wouldn't last long. He had plenty of work to keep him occupied and he had to get it done before his dinner plans with Carri.

The thought of dinner with her made him smile, despite the fact that he still wasn't sure what he wanted to do or where this relationship was going to go. It was going somewhere that was for sure. Ever since that first night, things had been more intense between the two of them. He hadn't had a relationship like this before and although she drove him nuts at times, it was still amazing.

Which was what made the fact that he couldn't outline where he was going to go in this relationship even more difficult. He had asked Jason and Tommy for advice, leaving out some of the more intense parts including the sex. Not that their advice had made the situation any clearer. Jason was pretty straight forward, his advice boiling down to either you want to do this with her or you don't. Jason seemed to think that if one were to put aside the fact that she was a reporter, she would make for an interesting girlfriend. Not that he was interested in her, or at least he said he wasn't.

Jason didn't bother to discuss the part about how he initially started spending time with Carri to spy on her. He didn't have to, Tommy covered that. In detail. Most of what Tommy had to say involved the rangers and it was quite convoluted. It went something along the lines of he should go for it if he wanted to. However, if he thought he wanted to he had to weigh in on the fact that he was doing this to find out what she knew about the rangers. Tommy also told him to keep in mind that the rangers were a full time job and so far, he had been lucky. If he spent a lot of time with her, he ran the risk of her discovering his identity and from there having it leaked globally.

Rocky had walked out of that discussion just as confused as he had been when he came to them. That was why he decided why not send a letter to Arnold, the world's number one male advice columnist. He had essentially told Arnold everything, except of course anything related to the rangers, and had signed the letter confused in California.

Much to his surprise, the letter made it in the newest issue of the magazine. He wasn't sure if he would actually get an answer, much less a timely one. He supposed his dilemma was somewhat interesting. He had read the response several times, including once right before he left for lunch.

The message wasn't really the reason he read it so many times. The message was simple. Arnold made a lot of valid points and in the end, the message was if you love her to hell with everything holding you back you should keep seeing her, if not then give her the boot as it was so eloquently phrased. That was Rocky's dilemma where Carri was concerned. He didn't know if he loved her or not.

He had trouble pushing everything else aside, clearing his mind and focusing on her. He knew it shouldn't be hard but the rest of his thoughts, Marie, the rangers, they wouldn't leave him alone to think clearly. He was hoping there would be a sign. Something that would push everything else aside and let him know beyond any doubt that he loved her, that he was in love with her.

He kept thinking about the fact that he didn't know how long one waited for such a sign, a way to know if you love someone. He wasn't sure if he ever had a sign like that with Marie. Perhaps that's why they didn't last. He wondered how long you waited to decide if you loved someone. How long should he wait. If he couldn't decide should he try some sort of relaxation technique to push all the other thoughts away? Alternatively, if he couldn't decide was that the sign to leave a person?

He sighed and shook his head. Whatever the deadline was he knew it wasn't coming up anytime soon. He had time to think about it, to wait for the sign or whatever it is that lets him know whether or not he loves her. In the end, Arnold was right, if he loved her go for it and if he didn't, don't.

Despite the accuracy of the message in Arnold's response, the content was the reason why he had read it so many times. The first time he read the article, parts of it had given him the oddest sense of déjà vu. He shook it off but he couldn't help but pick the article up and read it a second time. On the second read through he thought he knew where the sense of déjà vu was coming from, which is why he continued to read it. He wanted to be absolutely sure he was correct before he had lunch with Jason.

What he had noticed in the response on the second read through was that some of the things that Arnold had said had been practically verbatim of what Jason had told him when he went to Jason and Tommy for advice. At first he thought it was some sort of crazy coincidence. Based on what he knew about Arnold, Arnold and Jason were two separate people.

Then he got to researching. The magazine Arnold worked for did have its main office in downtown Angel Grove. In the same building that Jason told Billy he worked in as an administrative assistant. Jason was not the type to become an administrative assistant. There was no way he was going to buy that. The fact that Arnold's written words sounded almost exactly like Jason's spoken words and that Jason worked in the building that Arnold worked at was more than just a coincidence.

After researching and rereading the article, he was certain. Jason was Arnold. He approached the front door of the café where he could see Jason sitting in a booth waiting for him through the glass. He knew the truth. Whether or not Jason was going to admit it he wasn't sure, but Rocky had to confront him before he drove himself crazy.

* * *

"So," Kim started as she leaned against the console while Billy was doing work, "Trini is back in town?" she asked in an attempt to confirm the fact that Billy had indeed just said that he had lunch with Trini.

"Yes." Billy replied. He had enjoyed his lunch with the former yellow ranger. When he met with Kim to do some work afterwards he couldn't help but tell her where he had been. "Permanently. She came back and got a job here. Leaving her husband back home."

"Oh?" Kim questioned. She didn't know much about Trini's husband except for the fact that he was some sort of big shot criminal defense lawyer. The kind of lawyer that got wealthy scumbags off for just about anything.

"Apparently she caught him cheating on her." Billy elaborated. He didn't know if Trini wanted to keep this secret and suddenly he had doubts about saying anything to Kim. But then again Kim was one of Trini's closest friends in high school.

"Bastard." Kim said shaking her head. She had enough of a reason not to like the man thanks to what he did for a living. Now that she knew who he was, she found a completely new level of distaste for the man Kim assumed was soon to be Trini's ex-husband. "I'll have to give Trini a call so we can get together."

Billy gave her a slight nod. "I'm sure she'd like that. She sounded excited about seeing the old team." She had mentioned how much fun their last get together had been, and how seeing the others may be just what she needed to lift her spirits. Trini had said that she was ok with what had happened, that he was a jerk and she needed to move on, but at the same time it was evident that he had hurt her.

"Then I'll definitely call her. Later." Kim said with a smile. As much fun as talking about or talking to Trini would be, they really needed to focus on the task at hand. Besides, Trini had just gotten herself into the thick of things whether she wanted to or not. Cerlina would probably find Trini and go after her at some point. It was best to focus on Cerlina now. "Did you find anything out?"

Billy quickly shifted as Kim changed the subject. "As far as group weaponry or enhancements no." He replied. Kim had asked him to do lengthy research on the Sonic Crystal and the Sonic Rangers to see if there were any hidden weapons he could access.

"Damn it." Kim swore. She was dying for something to blow Cerlina clean out of the water. She was past the point of being ready for this to be finished.

"There is some good news." Billy spoke, catching Kim's undivided attention. He had scanned every piece of the crystal individually, analyzing the ranger powers it held and breaking down everything that ranger was capable of doing. Most of the crystals came back pretty much cut and dry, revealing everything that they were already aware of. However, the red crystal had a bit of a surprise. "Your team, most of your team, comes equipped with everything we've seen. But in scanning the red crystal I found a void of energy unlike anything on any of the crystals, something with powers that haven't been accessed yet."

"What does that mean?" Kim questioned although she had somewhat of an idea. It means that she had some sort of power that nobody else on her team had. What it was she had no idea, but she was hoping it would give her the edge she needed to defeat Cerlina.

"What it means is that you have some sort of battlizer mode." Billy replied. He had spent hours researching through Zordon's old information. It was tedious as Zordon was quite cryptic about many things. It had taken a lot of deciphering to find out all the initial information about the Sonic Crystal. Finding out what their former mentor knew about the red crystal was even harder.

"Good." Kim said with a nod. A battlizer mode could be the boost she needed. "What does it do?" She had visions of other ranger's battlizer modes. Some of them boosted some serious firepower and she hoped that whatever she had was comparable, if not better.

"I'm not completely sure." Billy told her. From what he could tell, even Zordon did not know the specifics. It was never used so what it actually did was anyone's guess.

Kim made a frustrated sound. She would like to know what the battlizer would do before she went in blindly. She hoped that she would have a chance to test it out. She supposed she shouldn't get frustrated, at least there was something extra embedded into her crystal. "So how do I access it?"

"That shouldn't be difficult." Billy assured her. He had isolated the energy source in the crystal. He couldn't synchronize it up to her original morph, but he could synchronize it to her morpher so she could call for her battlizer mode during a fight. "In theory if you give me your morpher I can adjust it so that it links to the inactive part of your crystal. Once I'm finished, calling for the battlizer mode while morphed should produce the desired results."

Quickly Kim called for her morpher. "Hopefully this will help." She said as she handed the device over to Billy.

Billy glanced at it briefly. He was sure this would give them the edge. Cerlina needed to be stopped. But then again they couldn't be sure what would happen when Kim went to access her battlizer mode. "I hope so too." He said as he quickly went to work.

* * *

Cerlina sat perched in her seat. She had been quite pleased with herself since her last major attack, a feeling that had only increased with time. She had gotten to Kimmie, destroyed something that the red ranger cared about. To see the devastation she caused, it was simply priceless.

Sure it was only one building destroyed after three months of trying. That fact had brought her down on the occasions it crossed her mind. She was Cerlina, feared throughout the galaxy. Having only destroyed one little building after three months seemed like it was not enough. She felt as though a novice could have done that task.

With all the power and abilities she had, she should have wrecked havoc on the planet by now, destroying anything, everything she pleased, and getting rid of her nemesis. However, getting past the Power Rangers to destroy anything was a task. That was why in fourteen years among various attempts there was not one success story. No one had conquered Earth, destroyed Earth, or enslaved Earth, whatever their desires may have been.

The reason for that was always the Power Rangers. It was especially difficult considering this was a team of senior rangers, led by Kimmie of all people. She felt as though she had done better than anybody else had who had tried. In three months she had managed to destroy one of her targets. That was more than some villains could say about years worth of work, and a lot of them faced off against rookie rangers.

That fact was the reason why her mood was never sour for long. She had accomplished something and she could mark one thing off her list and move on. In addition, she had proven something to herself. If you take time and make damn sure everything was falling into place, you would finish what you started. She hated taking all this time to plan. However, acting impulsively had not gotten her any results. Planning had. Therefore, after destroying one building she let Kimmie weep over it while she went to work on her next plan.

She was hoping that Kimmie and her team were devastated by the loss of their Youth Center, and by the injuries that were sustained by civilians and the one causality. That was somewhat disappointing. She was hoping she would have done more damage. However she had done enough to shake things up a bit. She was sure she had done enough to rock those rangers' worlds. She hoped that it was enough to throw them off their game, keep them unprepared for whatever was to come next.

The city was thrown off a bit. She had tapped into the satellite signals to watch news reports. They were afraid of her, as they should be. It delighted her to no end. She was only going to make it worse for them. After today, they would be too frightened to go anywhere ever again.

Thinking of today's plans reminded Cerlina to check on their progress. "Malizor!" she bellowed.

Her top warrior walked in swiftly from the next room, where he had been working on her plans for destruction. "Yes Cerlina?" he questioned, stopping to salute her.

"How are we doing?" she asked, feeling somewhat giddy. She knew they would be ready today but she was hoping it would be sooner rather than later.

"Finkus is almost finished." Malizor replied. "I expect to hear back from him shortly. Then we will be ready to attack on your command." Cerlina had created quite the interesting plan and they had been working hard on it ever since she outlined it. When they had told her the previous night that by that time today they would be ready to go, she had been thrilled.

Cerlina's eyes lit up at the thought of the immanent battle. This was going to be better than her last attack. She was going to step it up a notch, make this more memorable. She was going to put a dent in downtown Angel Grove. She was going to take out as many buildings as she could, starting at a specific location and going outward from there.

The location had been an easy choice. First it was a part of Angel Grove, the city that Kimmie was so fond of. Second, the epicenter of her explosion would take place at the building that housed Angel Grove's premier architecture and design firm, the same firm that employed one Michael Hart who commuted to that building every day from Stone Canyon. Kimmie was going to be devastated when she destroyed part of the city and took her brother with it.

How she was going to do it was even more creative. She was going to use a monster. The monster was not designed to blow things up like a normal monster. That was what took time. This monster was designed to be a bomb. He wwill go down and get the rangers attention, fighting them in front of the building. Kimmie may even have an idea that she was looking to kill her brother. They will be so distracted by stopping the monster that they would not even realize he was a bomb until it was too late.

The best part was that if the rangers happened to get lucky and blow the monster up before he was supposed to blow up, they would set him off and cause the detonation to go on as planned. Either way that area of the city was toast. Of course, the blast probably would not kill the rangers; they were too well protected for that.

This was where she came in. Although they won't be killed, the rangers will certainly be out of it, unable to perform properly if they were not too hurt to perform at all. And that was just physically. Mentally they would not be in the game at all. That was why, as soon as the blast went off, she was going to lead her troops in to kill as many of them as she could. She figured she could at least take three or four of them out before the rest of them escaped with whatever was left of their miserable little lives.

"Let me know the moment he's done and we'll proceed as planned." Cerlina spoke, watching as Malizor gave her a quick nod before running back to Finkus. This was definitely going to be a good afternoon.

* * *

It was a bit more complicated than what he had planned, but in the end Billy was certain that Kim would have access to a battlizer mode the next time she morphed. What it would accomplish was anyone's guess, but it was ready to go. "Everything is configured to the correct specifications." Billy assured the red ranger as he turned and handed her morphers back.

"Good. Now all I need to do is." Kim stopped short as the alarms went off. She sighed while Billy went to check on the disturbance. She was going to say they needed to run some sort of simulation in order for her to test the battlizer mode so she would know what it did when she went into a real battle. But she supposed a live test was as good as any. "I guess we'll find out what it does soon enough." She spoke more to herself than anything as the disturbance came up on screen.

"It looks as though Cerlina has sent a monster to downtown Angel Grove." Billy said as he surveyed the scene. It looked like it was just a monster, which was more than a little unusual. "There isn't anyone accompanying the monster."

"Odd." Kim said as she looked at him for a moment. The building looked vaguely familiar. It took her a moment to figure out why and then fear hit her like a ton of bricks. She clinched her fists and turned back to Billy. "Contact the others. Then I want you to do a multilevel scan on everything in the area. She's planning something. That's my brother's office building."

"On it." Billy spoke but he wasn't sure if she heard him as she was already starting to morph and teleport away.

Kim was furious at the potential attack on her brother. She wasn't surprised though, Cerlina had promised to destroy everything and she had done a fine job with the Youth Center. If they had done more than a surface scan of everything, they would have saved the Youth Center. That was not anyone's fault, they hadn't known. This time though they would not make that mistake. Nothing was going to happen to her brother.

The red ranger snarled from behind her helmet as she called on her weapon. "Let's make this quick." She said as she headed toward him with her sword in hand.

"And quick it will be." The monster replied in a singsong voice. The monster itself was below average. Its fighting skills were decent enough, and as far as brains, well Cerlina hadn't really seen the need for it to think much. It was a bomb, its only objective being to stay close to the building so it would make sure that spot was ground zero.

Kim didn't think much of the monster as she ran to attack it furiously. Within moments, the rest of her team was attacking with her. The fight continued but Kim was hardly concentrating on it. She had to know what was wrong here. This monster was an average fighter at best. It could throw the rangers off but she doubted it would take long for them to destroy him.

Before she could stress herself out over the situation, Billy's voice came through her helmet. Kim stepped back from the fight so she could get some answers. "What's going on?"

"The monster is a bomb." Billy said. Everything had seemed so peaceful and quiet when he was doing the scan, until he focused on the monster. He couldn't believe his eyes. He was now working furiously to find out everything he could about the monster before it was too late.

"What do you mean?" Kim asked. She had a bad feeling she knew where he was going with this.

"He's set to explode. He's got enough force that he'll take out at least a mile radius, with your brother's building at the center." Billy quickly explained as more bits of information were being deciphered on the screen in front of him.

"We have to destroy him." Kim said with a growl as she prepared to call her team back. Cerlina would not go after her family like this and get away with it.

"No!" Billy's shout came through loud and clear. Kim stopped in her tracks and waited. "If you blow him up you'll detonate him. We have to find another way."

"Ok, fine." Kim replied. This was not looking good but they would work something out. "Let me know what you've got. And how long we've got to do it in before this thing goes off." Kim spoke quickly as she kept an eye on the fight. There was not anything too serious going on. The rangers were getting good hits in and the monster was pushing them off of him. The rangers easily had the upper hand. There had to be a way to deactivate him safely. As she drifted off in her own thoughts, she realized too much time had passed without a word from Billy. "Billy?" she questioned, still waiting for answers.

"Oh God." Billy finally said. He had decrypted the timer. There wasn't much they could do at all. "Kim you've got seconds left." He said, unable to hide the panic in his voice.

Kim ran toward the monster as she yelled at Billy. "Teleport him out of here!" she ordered. It was the first thing that came to mind.

"I can't teleport anything. Whatever that bomb is emitting is interfering with our teleportation signals." Billy spoke quickly as he hurried to find anything he could do to help. Unfortunately the clock was almost down to zero. Angel Grove's citizens had never seen tragedy like what was about to befall on them.

"Move!" Kim spoke, this time ordering the other rangers back as she gestured to them wildly. Nobody had any idea what was going on. They did notice the monster was starting to visibly shake. Kim had no time to think about what she was doing. She simply jumped on top of him, holding on to him for dear life as a purple light surrounded them both and they disappeared.

Whether or not she had gotten him out, whether or not she was in time was unclear. The next thing Kim knew she was being hurdled in the air by the pieces of what was formerly the monster they were facing. She didn't know how far she was flung. She was aware that every muscle in her body ached. Once she opened her eyes, she realized she was lying in a pile of sand. Pulling herself to her feet she looked around.

Sand was the only thing she could see for miles. She smiled to herself as she realized that she had made it to the Sahara Desert in time. The explosion had done nothing more than kick up a whole bunch of sand. Satisfied, she returned to the scene of the battle where Cerlina and her cronies were waiting.

"How dare you." Cerlina spoke slowly as she looked at the returning ranger, hatred dripping from every word. This was the perfect plan. It was impossible that she was able to foil her like that.

"Me?" Kim questioned, matching the bitterness in her enemy's voice. "You went after my brother, my family. And you expected me not to try and stop you."

"You'll pay for this." Cerlina promised with a growl as she moved in to charge Kimmie. She didn't care about anything else now besides ripping her limb from limb. She had ruined a perfectly good plan. That was unacceptable.

Kim shifted her stance. If the battlizer was going to be enough to destroy Cerlina, now was the time to find out. She moved herself into a position similar to her morphing stance. "I need battlizer mode, now!" she cried out, hoping that would do the trick.

Indeed it did as seconds later she was no longer wearing the spandex that the rangers wore. Instead, she was coated in a hard armor of some sort that was about an inch thick. Kim quickly noted that it was not as easy to move in the armor, but when her helmet powered up she realized that the battlizer mode wasn't made for hand-to-hand combat.

Her visor was now overlaid with some sort of computer access screen which listed all the weapons she had access to. She scanned through the list and picked one she thought would work. She selected that weapon as Cerlina was approaching. One of the thick panels of armor on her left arm slid back, and a small missile rose out of the armor, ready to launch. Kim lifted up her arm and pointed toward Cerlina, firing just before Cerlina reached her. Cerlina quickly moved out of the way and the missile hit an unsuspecting Cryobot.

"Damn." Kim swore to herself as Cerlina stood up and was back on her path of attack. Kim quickly shifted through the weapons once more and selected another one, this one coming out of a different panel on her right arm.

Cerlina jumped on her and pulled her to the ground, seconds before she could fire. Cerlina sat on top of her, going in for blows to the head. The other rangers moved in to pull her away but never got the chance as Kim grabbed her chest with her right arm and fired her next weapon, a continuous laser burst that knocked Cerlina back off of her feet.

Both women stood and Cerlina glared at Kimmie. "Impressive." Cerlina said with a snarl. "But it will take more than that to kill me." She promised as she reached deep within herself. No one but Kim noticed that her eyes started to glow red. Seconds later fire raced across the pavement, and in a burst of electric energy it engulfed the red ranger.

"Kim!" Tommy yelled. He wasn't sure what was going on and he didn't know how to help her but he would be damned if he wasn't going to die trying. However it didn't appear as though she needed help. Her suit absorbed the fire and the energy and it radiated off of her.

Even Kim was surprised by the sudden turn of events as she held her hands in front of her face and looked them over. Without warning, a force overwhelmed her, expelling the fiery energy off of her and returning it to its sender.

Cerlina took the hit and flew back. Malizor was quickly at her side, helping her to her feet. She was seething and as long as he had worked for her he had never seen her that angry. She ripped herself from his grip and took a step forward. "This is far from over." She promised as she looked around at her small army. With this new development, they were going to have to go back to the drawing board. She was going to make Kimmie suffer and pay even if she had to dig down to this pathetic planet's core on her own and just destroy the entire thing in one shot. It was far from what she wanted but if it came down to it, she would take it. She made a motion to Malizor and seconds later they were all gone.

Kim let out a sigh of relief and turned toward the other rangers. Tommy was the first to walk over to her. "Are you ok?" he asked, putting a hand on her armor. He was amazed by what this battlizer could do. He assumed it was something Billy had recently discovered. He supposed he shouldn't be too surprised, many reds ended up with battlizer modes.

"I'm fine." Kim replied, smiling at him from behind her helmet.

Jason let out a low whistle. "Damn Kim how do we get fitted with that?"

Kim let out a small chuckle. "Sadly I'm the only one who qualifies." She said. It would be nice for the whole team to have it. After all, it came with some amazing capabilities. However, it was not as useful in hand-to-hand combat. In addition, it apparently wasn't quite enough to destroy Cerlina. "Let's get back to the Command Center." She said as she glanced at the others. She was going to have to come up with another way to get rid of Cerlina. She hoped they weren't running short on ideas. Even if they were, she would keep trying. If it came down to it she would sacrifice herself to make sure Cerlina could never come after anyone she loved.

She watched as the other rangers nodded in agreement. They would need to be briefed on what happened with the monster today, and what the deal was with her battlizer mode. She watched as multicolored streaks started flying through the air. She took one last glance at the building in front of her which housed her brother safe inside. Cerlina almost got to him. She could never let her get that close again.

Seconds later the noses plastered in the windows high above the action, Michael Hart included, watched as the final colored streak, the red streak went soaring through the air. As much fun as it was to watch the power rangers win, it was comforting to know that they had saved the day again. Now the streets below were quiet, and it was time to get back to their normal lives.


	22. Revelations

**Dislcaimer:** The Power Rangers are Disney's, there is a reference to the character Marie who belongs to KSuzie, everyone else is mine.

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"Revelations"

As if there were not enough reasons for Cerlina to be disgusted with Earthlings at the moment, now she has found another one. It was the time of year that they were all so happy, at least those who were celebrating the upcoming holiday. In a few short days, the Christians of Earth would celebrate some sort of religious holiday. Cerlina did not care much for organized religion. She thought for the most part it was a hoax. There was no magical being guiding your destiny, at least not in the sense religion looked at it.

If she ever decided she was going to pick a religion, she certainly would not pick this silly Earth one. What they were doing made absolutely no sense to her. A big day on their religious calendar and they celebrated it by giving presents and telling tall tales about a fat man in a red suit. She thought that was what made them so happy, that was the point of the holiday. Personally, she liked any holiday that involved some sort of sacrifice or destruction. That would be the center of a perfect religion. Maybe she was wrong, maybe there was some connection between their strange way of celebrating and the holiday. She didn't know, hadn't bothered to look into it. And quite frankly she didn't care.

What she did care about was that the citizens of Angel Grove were so happy and carefree. She wanted them to be panicked and miserable, on edge waiting for her next attack. She wanted them to curse the ground that the Power Rangers walked on. She wanted them to be reeling from her last destructive episode.

However, that had turned out to be a dud. Kimmie stopped her. How she managed to do it, Cerlina had no idea. Somehow, she knew the bomb was there, and she got rid of it before it even had a chance to do any damage. If that wasn't bad enough, the woman she loathed got a battlizer. Cerlina couldn't help but wonder what powers she pissed off for Kimmie to get a battlizer. Kimmie got on her last nerve well enough on her own without giving her a battlizer.

After the last battle, Cerlina returned to lick her wounds. It was more her pride that was hurt than anything else. Sure, she was a little sore but that was nothing. She would get past that. Nobody had ever returned her own shot on her like that and it made her furious. Those who worked for her were not oblivious to her anger. They had known enough to know to stay away from her while she vented her frustrations.

Venting had been easier than she thought and quite therapeutic. She found a world more backwards than Earth and took some frustration out on its inhabitants. It actually felt quite nice to terrorize some world's peoples seeing as how she could not manage to terrorize the ones she wanted to. Of course, when she returned she still had to figure out how to make Kimmie pay and she had spent the next few days locked away from the others plotting.

She wasn't quite sure what good that did. She has yet to figure out a way to disable or destroy that damned battlizer. Those sorts of things could be your downfall if you weren't careful. However, she was fairly certain that Kimmie's battlizer wouldn't destroy her. If it could, she would have done it the last time they met. Nevertheless, it could make a dent in her other plans.

She spent so much time thinking about how to get to Kimmie that she hadn't focused much on her next plan of action. What was she going to go after next? Who was she going to go after next? She wasn't sure. She would have to be sly about it. Kimmie was wising up to her and it just wasn't fair.

For now, there was no scheme to take Kimmie down another notch. That pissed her off. Kimmie was able to roam free and enjoy this holiday. She would spend her time shopping like all of those other disgusting Earthlings instead of cowering in fear wondering what she was going to take from her next.

Of course, even if she didn't have a master plan, she could at least wipe the smiles off of their faces. She was going to have Finkus make as many monsters as he could. She really didn't care if they were new and inventive, or if they were created from Rita Repulsa's leftover molds. As long as they could surround the mall and completely terrorize the people inside. She was going to wipe the smiles off of their pathetic little faces, and irritate Kimmie in the process. It wasn't the most sure fire destructive plan ever, but it would certainly bring a smile to her face and maybe that would be enough to focus back on the issue at hand.

* * *

Billy found himself pacing in front of the back entrance to the county courthouse. He was waiting for Trini's day to be over and for her to come out so that they could go to dinner. He thought about her all day, even while he was doing work for his new company.

He was really looking forward to going out with her, as friends of course. This would be the fourth time they had seen each other since she got back into town, not counting the ranger gathering. It was nice; Billy was having a good time with her.

Of course, he was hoping that they could go out as more than just friends. He had always liked Trini. She had always been nice to him in school. She was one of the few people who really understood him, even when he spoke in technical terms. He always had the rangers as his friends, but he always felt like Trini was there for him the most out of anyone.

He had wanted to ask her out in high school but he couldn't get up the nerve. He didn't know why. Girls in general made him nervous but Trini was different. He supposed it was because he feared rejection from her more than anybody else. There had been so many mornings when he had looked at himself in the mirror and said to himself that today would be the day he finally asked Trini Kwan on a date. Then he would see her and without fail, he would chicken out.

There were girls in school who asked him out, but never the other way around. He had gone on a few dates but never with the girl he wanted. When Trini left for the Peace Conferences, he felt heartbroken. That was the last time he had seen her until just recently. They stayed in touch for a while by writing each other. Then Billy moved to Aquitar to be with Cestria. It was not long after that he had heard that Trini met someone as well.

Now they were here together, and single, in Angel Grove for the first time in almost twelve years. But like high school, he still hadn't asked her out. This time it was different though. This time he was not too chicken to ask her out. He had changed in many ways since high school. He was no longer afraid to ask her out.

What was holding him back was the fact that she just left her husband. He knew that she seemed at peace with that and ready to move on. Still it was fresh for her. He wanted to wait until she was ready before he asked her out. He wished he knew how to tell when that would be. For him, his marriage with Cestria seemed over long before it was official. He could have dated the moment he walked away from her and not have given her a second thought.

However, he did not know how it was for Trini. He knew what she said, but he was not sure what she felt and that was why he was not asking her out on a date. One day he would, when he thought she was ready for it. And hopefully she would say yes.

He heard the doors to the courthouse swing open again. And just like he had every other time in the last twenty minutes, he turned to see who was coming out. This time he was rewarded. He smiled as he walked to the bottom step to greet her. "Hey." He said with a smile.

"Hey Billy." Trini greeted him with enthusiasm. "Sorry I'm late. I was on the phone with a reporter." Trini apologized as she let Billy lead her down the sidewalk. The woman was trying to follow up on supposed new leads to the case that she just finished proceeding over the day prior, her first official trial in Angel Grove. She was not the only reporter to call and she had told them all the same thing. Whatever information they were being fed was inaccurate.

"Not a problem." Billy assured her. Trini hadn't been working in Angel Grove long and already her schedule had exploded. He figured it was great for her. Work was the one thing that helped him forget about his ex.

"Where are we going tonight?" Trini questioned as she looked up at him. He had taken her out several times in the short time she had been back. It was actually quite nice. She had lunch with him on that Friday, and then she had seen all the rangers that Sunday afternoon. He had taken her out for late dinners on both Monday and Wednesday nights since she had worked late and hadn't had the opportunity to eat anything and now he was taking her out for a real dinner tonight.

It was almost as though they were dating. Which wouldn't be a bad thing. She liked Billy, she always had. She didn't know why they didn't go out before she left for the Peace Conferences. She knew why they hadn't gone out in all the years between but now she was free. Plus she was over the man who she had caught cheating on her. She thought it would have been harder but it wasn't. He had obviously moved on before they separated and it was not worth any more tears.

"I was thinking about that new seafood restaurant downtown." Billy replied. He thought it would be a nice place for the two of them to go.

"You mean the expensive one? The one that's supposed to be romantic?" Trini questioned somewhat surprised. Did Billy want this to be a date? She didn't think that friends went there for dinner.

Billy blushed. He hadn't thought about the romance part. He had just heard it was nice and he wanted to take her somewhere nice. "Money's no problem." He said quickly. He had gotten enough from selling his inventions. However, he was not sure if it was the money she was stressing about. "But if you don't want to go there with me that's ok."

"No, I'll go there with you. I was just surprised by your pick. I thought it was geared more toward couples." Trini replied. It might be fun to go to this kind of restaurant with Billy. Maybe something would come out of it.

"We're not going as a couple." Billy spoke quickly. He didn't want her to think that they were. Well, maybe he did. He did want to date her.

"You wouldn't want to be a couple with me?" Trini teased her friend.

"That's not it at all; I'd love to be a couple with you." Billy tried to correct his last statement. He was certain he had just made it worse. At least if she rejected him before he officially asked her out it would save him the trouble.

"Good." Trini said, smiling up at him, her eyes twinkling. "I would love to be a couple with you too."

"Really?" Billy asked, somewhat surprised. "You know if you weren't going through this divorce I'd ask you out right now." He tried to joke with her.

Trini smiled and hooked her arm in his. "I'd say yes if you asked me out right now." She assured him. Maybe they could start what they could have in high school.

"Oh." Billy said. He thought that she would need more time. However, she did not seem to be thinking at all about her ex. "Well, then, maybe we could make this a date." He stuttered getting the words out. He didn't think he would be nervous with her this time. He supposed he was wrong.

"Great. We will go out on a dinner date. To that nice seafood restaurant downtown." Trini replied. This would be fun. They would have a chance at seeing how things worked between the two of them. Maybe this was the way things were meant to turn out after all.

"Ok then. It's a date." Billy said. He was happy, nervous, and excited all at once. He hadn't been out with anyone since Cestria. He couldn't wait. Before he could say anything else, his communicator went off.

"What was that?" Trini asked, glancing down at his wrist. It sounded like it came from his communicator. Go figure that the bad guys would ruin their diner date.

"The Command Center is picking up a disturbance. I had better go see what it is." Billy said with a sigh. Cerlina could not have had worse timing. He glanced down at Trini who smiled at him. With any luck, this would go by quickly and he could hurry back to her.

* * *

Carri walked down the sidewalk toward her karate school. It was after hours and the place was technically closed, but she knew that its owner was still there. That was whom she was going to surprise. She thought that she was spending the night working but the story they were so adamant that she cover turned out to be a bust. Her interviews confirmed what she already suspected, and with a little bit more digging with help from an old contact, she found out that all the leads all the other reporters in town were chasing turned out to be bogus. Of course, she was going to keep that bit of information to herself. Her boss agreed that any station willing to run the story they would let them and he gave her the rest of the night off for a job well done. Which was fine with her, it meant she could surprise her boyfriend.

As she approached the door it swung open and a man she had met a few times walked out. "Hey." Jason said, startled by Carri's presence. He supposed she had been here to surprise Rocky seeing as how he was planning on going home after he finished here.

He was glad that she hadn't gotten there a few minutes earlier. He had been discussing what Rocky had confronted him with a few days ago. They hadn't really gotten to talk about it then, any more than Rocky telling him that he knew. He had gotten a call from work to get back in and finish his letter as the deadline had changed to later that afternoon due to unforeseen circumstances. It didn't take him long, but by the time he was finished they had the monster attack then Rocky had to get back to work. Between Rocky's working and dating and Jason's working and going out, this was the first opportunity in a week they had to really chat.

At first Jason tried to deny it. Would it really make any sense that he of all people was an advice columnist? However after reading Arnold's advice, Rocky found it more believable that Jason was Arnold as opposed to being an administrative assistant. Jason read over the advice he had given confused in California. He almost hit himself when he realized that a lot of it was what he told Rocky when he had come looking for advice about Carri.

Of course how was he supposed to know that confused in California was Rocky. Although the basic outline was the same, the letter held quite a bit more information than what Rocky had given him about his and Carri's relationship. After Rocky hounded him about his advice, Jason finally gave in. Besides he figured it was better that he tell him he was Arnold and to keep his mouth shut then to let him share his suspicions with his girlfriend.

Jason made it very clear that he wasn't even to mention Arnold's name in front of Carri, who had been pushing even harder as of late to discover Arnold's identity. Rocky held his biggest secret in his hands and he had to trust that he would not say anything. He was upset that Rocky knew. It wasn't that he had not thought about telling the other rangers. However, Rocky had managed to figure it out on his own. He would have told them when and if he was damn good and ready. Now the cat was out of the bag and every time Rocky heard anything about Arnold or read his advice, he would know who was behind it.

"Hey." Carri returned the greeting. She hadn't expected to see him here. She knew he and Rocky were friends but she wasn't sure how close they were. "You are taking private lessons?

Jason snorted. "Not hardly." He replied as he looked at her. He had fun that night in the bar with her, they were a lot alike. He wouldn't mind hanging out with her again sometime. Of course, he had many secrets to protect, however he was only planning on being just friends with her so he was sure he could keep his secrets a secret. "What about you? Going for a little private mat time with your instructor?"

Carri raised an eyebrow and grinned slyly at him as she opened the door. "We may have a private session scheduled for tonight." Not that they had anything planned for the night, but she wouldn't mind if she ended up on the mats with him, so to speak.

She could hear Jason laugh as she walked through the door. She thought she heard something chirp from behind her as the door swung shut. She turned to see Jason moving swiftly. She had to have been hearing things. Nothing chirped at her. The only thing out there was Jason, and now he was gone in a hurry. She smiled to herself as she thought that he must have a hot date that night. Jason was fun. She liked Rocky's friends. Not as much as she liked him though.

She walked quietly through the school and down the small hallway where Rocky's office was situated at the end. The door was cracked open and she pushed it all the way. "Hey babe, do you."

Suddenly she stopped short, everything forgotten. She caught him, and from the brief look on his face that she was able to see before the blue light took over he knew she was there. However, he didnt have time to react, didn't have time to say anything. In the blink of an eye, he transformed into the blue ranger and disappeared in a blue streak right before her eyes.

Carri felt numb. How could it have been right in front of her this whole time? Plopping ungracefully into the nearest chair, she put her head in her hands. Her boyfriend was the blue ranger. One of the very rangers that she had been working hard over the last few months to unmask. One of the rangers that she suspected had been here when she was in high school.

She felt a wave of emotions go over her and she didn't know which to process first. She was angry with herself for not being able to figure this out earlier. After all, she was Carri Hillard, no story that she wanted ever escaped her. She was somewhat excited. This was the story she had been waiting for, the story that was going to make her career. Unmasking the power rangers. It was what every reporter on this side of the country would die to do.

Then a thought came to her and she was suddenly quite depressed. She had been with him for a while now. What if he was only dating her because he wanted to keep her from finding out his identity? She knew that couldn't be entirely true. After all, she had been the one who had come to this school for instruction, and she was the one who had pursued him romantically. However, he had been the one to say yes. What if he had let their relationship progress instead of ending it because he wanted to know what she knows? He had always had such an interest in her Power Rangers stories. Now she knew why.

But what if he really did care about her? What if this wasn't all an act? She was good at reading people, and besides the incident at the fountain, she thought he was genuine. When they were together, she felt like he did care.

The bigger question was did she care. And she knew the answer to that. She had never been with a man like him. He was a good person, he didn't want her for her trust fund, and she always had an amazing time with him. She cared more than she was willing to admit to herself. And she honestly did not think everything between them was a lie.

Perhaps she was fooling herself. She wouldn't know until he returned. Either way who he was wouldn't change. He was a man who did not deserve the falling out that would come if she ran the story. His simple life would be ruined and she cared too much to do that to him. This was the biggest story of her career, the one that would make her a legend, and she was going to sit on it.

* * *

Rocky was one of the last rangers to arrive to the mall that night. He had so much information running around in his mind that the last thing he wanted to do was focus on the upcoming battle. He had blown it, there was no question about that. She had seen everything and so much was about to change for the worse. He was pulled into the moment by Jason's loud laugh. He turned toward the white ranger but he couldn't quite figure out what was so funny.

"We can laugh later." Kim pointed out, glancing over at Jason. She would admit to being amused as well. Out of the six monsters she had spotted around the mall, five of them were Rita's molds that they had fought early on.

"This ought to be easy." Jason said. If he remembered correctly, the monsters would be easier than usual to take down. Especially considering they were master rangers who knew how to defeat them. He even remembered their names after all these years. The assortment included Pudgy Pig, Eye Guy, Terror Toad, Snizard, and Octoplant.

"Alright guys split up. If you're familiar with a monster you should fight that one." Kim spoke quickly. Herself, Tommy and Jason all had experience with most of these monsters before and some of them were destroyed easier than others. If they could make some of them go away quickly, they could double-team the others. They needed to end this fast; these monsters were terrorizing people who were cowering behind whatever they could find. The monsters had managed to block the exits and it was up to the rangers to end this. Before she could continue, Tommy broke off for the action.

"On it." Tommy replied. He was steps ahead of Kim as he was in the process of making a beeline for Eye Guy. Although most of these creations he didn't face the first time around, Eye Guy was one that had shown up several times since his original debut.

"Right behind you." Jason added as he headed for Pudgy Pig. He was confident that he had enough firepower to take him down.

"The rest of you take a monster. If we have any information on it Billy will pass it along." Kim finished what she had started earlier, glancing briefly at the two ranger boys who ran away. Both were former reds and both were moving to take charge in their own way. She watched as Rocky went after Snizard, a monster he had seen before, and Karone took Octoplant while Zhane went after the monster they were unfamiliar with, leaving Kim with Terror Toad.

She smiled to herself as she went to face the familiar foe. The combat started and she found herself dodging familiar attacks. A few minutes in, she remembered to cut off his horn to make it harder for him to eat her. They spent a good bit of time dancing around each other in battle while she thought about how she killed him the first time. Once she realized how she destroyed him, she groaned.

An arrow in his mouth would do the trick. However, they didn't have any rangers with arrows handy. Unless. Kim stopped and smiled. "I need battlizer mode, now!"

A few seconds later, she was equipped with her battlizer and essentially out of hand-to-hand combat. Which was all right, she wasn't going to fight him like that anymore. She just had to avoid his tongue. She flipped through her weapons and was pleasantly surprised to find what she was looking for. She made her selection and one of the panels on her right wrist slid back. She moved her hand down and she had an easy way to aim the arrow. Not wasting any time, she shot a series of arrows into Terror Toad's mouth. And just like in her youth, he fell back and was gone.

She started to power down the battlizer when she caught a glimpse of Snizard and his zapper apple. The only way Rocky was going to get rid of him was to shoot that apple with an arrow. And she was the only one with an arrow handy. She walked toward him and lined up her shot, destroying the apple and along with it Snizard.

Rocky turned and looked at her, pausing in surprise. He quickly had to shake that off before taking off to join the battle against Cerlina's creation. With a quick glance, Kim realized that was where Tommy was after taking care of Eye Guy, and that Jason had managed enough firepower to finish of Pudgy Pig before he could eat anything else. Several of the mall patrons had slipped out the now free exits but some were still trapped.

Kim powered down from her battlizer mode and moved toward Karone and Octoplant, the last of Rita's original monsters remaining. "Need a hand?" she called out to the pink ranger.

"I'd love one." Karone replied. Billy had done a lot from his end to take some of the bite out of Octoplant's attack, but she still couldn't get to him to take him out.

Kim called for her sword then she and Karone both attacked with their power weapons. They got into the battle and after a tiring fight, Octoplant still would not go down. Kim couldn't help but wonder if she should have stayed in battlizer mode. A thought occurred to her and she decided to try something else first. Kim reached for her blaster and Karone followed suit. With a combination attack, Octoplant finally hit the floor and the two female rangers were now could concentrate on the last monster.

They both moved into formation with the others, who had been fighting hard against Cerlina's creation while Kim had spent her time running around helping take care of Rita's old monsters. Before Kim could move into the action, the white ranger took a hit and ended up practically on top of her. "I knew Rita's monsters would be easy." Jason said as he pulled himself to his feet. "It's this guy who's a pain in the ass."

Kim gave him a slight nod. It was obvious that the other rangers were not getting anywhere and she doubted her hands would help. Plus they had been fighting for a while now and were all ready to call it a day. "Guys let's fall back." She said, watching as the others glanced toward her before following her command. "We need the Sonic Cannon now!"

The cannon quickly fell into the rangers' hands and they gave the command to fire. Seconds later Cerlina's last creation was down for the count. The rangers stood firmly, all afraid that the monsters were all going to grow. Even the people left in the mall were not moving. Everyone stayed still for a good five minutes, the rangers taking note of what was going on in every direction before deciding that the danger was over.

"It's safe for you all to come out now." Tommy was the first ranger to speak. He wasn't sure what Kim was thinking, but she had to agree that Cerlina was done with whatever terror she had planned on those running out for last minute shopping.

Kim glanced over at him. She thought that was her call to make, but she wouldn't let it bother her. Instead, she looked over at her teammates. "I think we're good. There isn't anything to discuss. I think it's time for us to go back home."

Rocky noticed that the others were slow to move. Some were shifting to teleport back home. Karone leaned over and whispered something to Kim. Seeing as how they weren't going to the Command Center and nobody else had anything to say, it was time for him to rush back. He didn't know why, the damage was already done. Maybe it was not too late to talk to her though, keep her from ruining his life. He sighed. Who was he kidding? He'd go back, his life would be over, and he'd owe the others a huge explanation. Feeling defeated he moved in position to teleport back to the scene of the crime.

* * *

After what turned out to be a longer than usual battle in the mall, Rocky returned to his office. He was somewhat surprised to find Carri sitting in a chair across from his desk. He supposed she could have had the story all ready to go by now and was returning to gloat. "Will I be the headlining story tonight?" he asked, a bitterness to his voice that surprised him. He supposed he was angry. He was angry for allowing himself to have feelings for her. He was angry for slipping and revealing the truth. He was angry that his life was going to change faster than he could handle it.

Carri looked up at him, her eyes briefly making contact with his before turning away. "I'm not running the story. I'm not telling your secret. I don't want to ruin your life like that." She said. There was a silence between them and she let out a somewhat hysterical laugh. "The funny thing is I don't know why I'm sitting on it. You have probably been spying on me. I'm sure this whole relationship was a front."

Rocky looked at her for a moment. He was in shock. He expected her to run with the story. He expected to return with a camera crew ready to harass him. He expected to turn on the news and see his face plastered next to a picture of the blue ranger. Yet here she sat with the one story she had obsessed over forever and she was doing nothing with it.

She wasn't going to do anything with it and that spoke volumes. She cared about him. More than her work, which was what was he thought was the most important thing to her. Yet it obviously wasn't. Whether or not she would say it aloud, he was more important than her career. That she would do this for him told him that she had real feelings for him.

It was then that he realized the fact that she would do this for him was his sign. Suddenly it was all clear to him. Nothing else mattered, not Marie, not the rangers, not anything. Here was a woman that he looked forward to seeing every day. A woman who was in his thoughts whenever he was alone, as he remembered being with her in many ways. He enjoyed everything about her, both the good and the bad. He could not imagine not being with her. "I love you." He suddenly blurted out.

Carri looked taken back. That was not what she was expecting. She was expecting him to confess to spying on her, not tell her that he loved her. "So what, you're telling me that you weren't with me in order to keep your secret?"

"No." Rocky spoke quickly as he took the chair next to hers, sitting in it and turning so he could face her. "I mean." He sighed and reached out, grabbing her hands in his. "When you first asked me out, I wasn't really that interested. I had just gotten divorced, gotten back into the rangers, and I didn't really want to date. However, I was interested in knowing what you knew about us so I went out with you that first time. But after that, we started dating and everything changed. Even if we didn't start ideally I do love you."

Carri worked her hands out from underneath Rocky's. "You expect me to believe that?" she asked, but it didn't come out harsh like she had intended it to. He did not have to tell her all that. He could have lied to her it would have been easy. She probably wouldn't have believed him but that was something else entirely. She appreciated his honesty. And she thought maybe she loved him too, assuming that he really did love her.

Rocky was hurt but he couldn't blame her. Without warning, he leaned in and kissed her, the kiss becoming more and more passionate as they both started reaching for each other. Before they jumped into bed and didn't finish this conversation, Rocky pulled back. "I'm sorry that I couldn't be honest with you when we started dating. But that part doesn't matter. What matters is that despite everything, I fell in love with you."

Carri took a deep breath to focus. She had almost pulled him to the floor without thinking about it. She had deep feelings for him too. She thought it was love. She honestly didn't know. She had never really loved a guy before. Most of them turned out to be jerks. However, Rocky was special. And after that last kiss she was pretty sure he was being honest with her. Were they being completely honest with each other now?

She was curious if there was that much trust between them. She had to know. "How long have you been a ranger?"

That was not where he thought she was going to go. Nevertheless, if she was going to ask he would answer if it would make her feel better about him. "I was a ranger for two and a half years in high school. Until I hurt my back in a karate tournament. I gave up being a ranger until a few months ago."

Carri nodded and looked at him thoughtfully. She took a moment to gloat to herself that she was right, that these rangers were the original rangers. That quickly passed and she found herself happy that he had shared. "Thank you." She said, leaning in to give him a kiss of her own.

They pulled apart again and she stayed close to him, their lips almost touching. She froze there for a moment. She didn't know what else to say. That she loved him? He had said that he loved her, and the idea that she loved him was not farfetched. Yet it sounded like an odd thing to be coming from her. But then again she had feelings for him, strong ones. How else would they be characterized? She didn't know the answer to that. She was sure how most people who had not been in screwed up relationships characterized them. And that gave her a decision. "I love you too." She whispered.

All was forgotten as Rocky put his arms around her and pulled her into him, putting his hands against her skin as he kissed her. The loved each other, they trusted each other, and nothing else in the world mattered.

* * *

The other rangers had all gone home, most not sticking around after the end of the battle. Even Billy left once he realized the others were going home and he usually lingered around long after everyone else. The only two that had gone to the Command Center to talk were Kim and Karone. Kim had wanted to leave, and had planned to leave to meet Tommy who had to rush off to get some documents finished and sent to Reefside for his classes the next day. Instead, Karone had stopped her after the battle and asked her to return to the Command Center with her to talk.

"What's going on?" Kim asked as she leaned against a console and crossed her arms, staring over at the pink ranger.

"I've been doing a lot of research on how to get rid of Cerlina." Karone informed the team's leader. She was determined to make this world safe for her brother and his family. She had done a good bit of digging to come back to quite a simple idea.

"Research?" Kim questioned. She was not aware that anyone besides her was looking into the matter. She didn't expect them to. She was the one with the vast amounts of knowledge on Cerlina, and the one on the team who was the most qualified to kill her.

"Yes." Karone replied, somewhat insulted by Kim's tone. She was just as capable of doing research as anyone. "It won't be long now before I have a niece or nephew in this world and I don't want the child to be born with Cerlina hanging over our heads."

Kim gave her a slight nod, ignoring the attitude that came with the statement. She couldn't blame her. Cerlina was going to focus on former rangers and Karone's brother would probably be near the top of the list. "I don't suppose you've figured out a way to kill her."

"Kill? No." Karone replied. She tried to find a way to kill her but Cerlina was much more powerful than anyone they had faced before. Zarkan trained her, she had already proven she was skilled and tough and would not go down easily. Even when she fought against Kim, they had a seesaw battle that usually ended in somewhat of a draw.

"I think that's the only way." Kim spoke quickly. She didn't want to cut down Karone's idea before she got a chance to share it. However, anything short of dead and Cerlina could and would come back to haunt them. She was simply too strong.

"What about containment?" Karone asked and watched as Kim looked at her skeptically. Karone frowned. She was on to something here, something she thought might actually work. "We can take a page out of Zordon's book. He was good at containing those that were too strong for him to defeat. Like Rita."

"You want to put Cerlina in a space dumpster?" Kim questioned, totally floored at that suggestion. Sure it would work now, but look how it turned out in the future. "So that ten thousand years from now she can escape to kill again?" That was not a risk she was going to take.

"I was thinking of a version of that, but something more like the hyperlock chamber he trapped Ivan Ooze in." Karone replied. Kim didn't seem to be thrilled by the idea but she was determined to get her to listen.

Kim couldn't help but laugh aloud. "A hyperlock chamber is a much better idea. Then we only have to wait six thousand years for her to return." She didn't know what Karone was thinking. She needed something that was guaranteed to be a success for eternity. Zordon was good at trapping people, but they tended to find their way back eventually.

Karone made a frustrated sound. She didn't appreciate Kim's sarcasm. "First off they were both freed by humans. We can eliminate that possibility by storing the sealed container somewhere that the rangers could watch over it." Karone spoke quickly. Kim was about to comment but Karone continued. "Not on Earth, it's too risky. A planet not as crowded so that we can hide the thing deep underground and it not be found. Somewhere that fights against evil and has a line of rangers to look after it. Somewhere like Triforia."

Kim paused for a moment to think about what Karone was saying. She had put a lot of thought into the idea and maybe there was something to it. They would have to control the location of the containment unit and make it a well-guarded secret. Triforia actually was not a bad suggestion, but they would have to get the people, Trey especially, on board. If not, a few other planets fit the description. However, there was more to think about than just that. "Even if we make sure it's guarded, how do we know Cerlina won't escape?"

"We don't know how many evil beings Zordon imprisoned over his life span. I think it's a safe assumption that if he did it to Rita and Ivan, he has done it to others who have not been able to escape. I think the ability to make a well executed containment unit is there, however it's going to take some research on our part on what Zordon has done and who he knew or may have worked with that would have answers." Karone offered up part of the explanation. "Plus magic, like everything else has evolved and grown since Rita and Ivan were trapped. Between magic and technology, we should be able to create a solid containment unit."

While Karone was talking, Kim was thinking about everything she was saying. She was absolutely right. There had to be a way to create some sort of containment unit and keep it safe. There would always be the risk of Cerlina escaping. However, if they did this right, they could minimize the risks to almost nothing. If she could keep Cerlina contained forever, she would do it.

"I'll start the research." Kim spoke up. She could go to Eltar, meet up with Phantom Ranger and they could sort through everything Zordon kept hidden there. She assumed they had already gone through everything he had here.

"Good." Karone said, allowing herself to feel relieved. With Kim taking charge her ideas could move forward. She was going to give her brother the best present of all. They would rid the world of a woman who was quite possibly more evil than she had been as Astronema. She was going to guarantee that Andros and Ashley would be able to bring their child into this world peacefully.


	23. Resolutions

**Disclaimer:** Power Rangers are still Disney's, everyone else is still mine.

Return to Action  
"Resolutions"

It had been a long time since Rocky had been in this good of a mood. Things finally seemed to be looking up for him. His business was thriving. He had not heard much from his ex-wife in a long time, although she had contacted his mother but that he was doing a pretty good job of ignoring, and he had a new girlfriend who he was in love with and who loved him back.

The best part about their relationship was he could be completely honest with her, even where the rangers were concerned. A few months ago, he would have said that was impossible. After all, she is Angel Grove's best reporter whose highest-ranking stories were on the rangers. It had been a little over a week since she found out their secret, and not only had she sat on the story but she had released information that had thrown other reporters in the wrong direction. Moreover, as far as he could tell, she could care less.

As he thought about her, she spoke and pulled him back into the moment. "Where are we going?" Carri asked as she continued to allow him to pull her through Angel Grove Park.

"I told you it's a surprise." Rocky said with a grin as he gave her hand a squeeze. He wanted to celebrate the last afternoon of the year by taking her to a romantic picnic lunch in the park. He had found a quiet location and set it all up earlier. He was hoping she would like it.

Carri made a grunting noise. She did not want to be dragged across the park for a surprise. She had stories she could be working on, other things that needed to get done, and Rocky had called her and talked her into spending part of the afternoon with him. She was already taking the night off to go with him to a party. However, as much as work was calling for her she couldn't resist being with him. Things had gotten really intimate between them since he was no longer tiptoeing around her and keeping secrets, and not just on a sexual level although that was amazing too.

"It's not far I promise." Rocky assured her. He knew he had to convince her to come but he was pretty sure it would be worth it. He ducked underneath a tree and went around a few tall bushes, where hidden in the back was his picnic blanket and basket. "Surprise." He said as he gestured to his set up and turned toward his girlfriend.

Carri gave him a look. "You brought me out here for food?" she questioned, not able to help the smile that was forming at the corner of her mouth.

"Not just food." Rocky replied. He could see that she was trying to act as though he interrupted her day for nothing but she was not holding onto the act well. "There's going to be wine and romance and little to no chance of anybody actually finding us out here."

"Oh well then in that case." Carri said as she finally flashed him a smile. In all honesty, it was a beautiful afternoon and even if she just sat out here with Rocky and a basket of food, she would be perfectly content. That meant she would have to cancel her late afternoon appointment at the nail salon so she could make up her work before the New Year's party but it was all right. She would much rather spend the time with her boyfriend than have nice nails for the party.

"So you like it?" Rocky questioned. She never really seemed concerned with big romantic gestures. He had never really been that much of a romantic but with her he thought it was fun.

She removed her hand from his and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer toward her. "It will do." She said with a sly grin before planting her lips on his.

Rocky had something to say to that but for the moment the words were forgotten as he was swept away in her kiss. When she finally pulled back, her mischievous eyes locked with his and she grinned at him. It took him a moment to get his bearings back and then he spoke. "It will do more than just do." He said as he scooped her up and laid her down on the picnic blanket.

"Oh?" Carri questioned as she propped herself up on her elbows while Rocky sat down beside of her. "What in the world would make you think that?" She asked as she raised an eyebrow at him and resisted the urge to smile.

Rocky laid down as well and propped his head up on his hand. "Just a hunch." He said as he leaned in toward her. As she tried her best to appear not to be impressed, Rocky put an arm around her and pulled her toward him. She lost her balance and tumbled down to the blanket, pulling him with her. Before she could say anything, he started kissing her.

The kissing slowed and Carri smiled at him, his eyes finding hers as he smiled back. "What about the food part of the trip?" she questioned. She preferred the kissing, but she wanted to play with him a little bit.

"Romance first." Rocky said with a smile as he leaned back toward her. All was forgotten in their little secluded area of the park as their lips met again, starting what Rocky hoped would be the best lunch she ever had.

* * *

As Earth was on the verge of yet another holiday, Cerlina found herself pouting alone in her throne room again. Christmas had come and gone with Kimmie and her friends celebrating it as if nothing bad was going on in the world. It made Cerlina angry, made her want to go down there and rip Dulcea's little pet limb from limb.

Instead, she went back to work on her plans while another holiday approached. This time it was a worldwide holiday, as Earth's calendars flipped forward another year. The people of Earth would get drunk and celebrate until the early hours of the morning. She was quite glad she did not participate in that tradition. She tended not to celebrate the New Year at all.

Some other worlds did. At the date of the intergalactic New Year, there were planets everywhere that threw huge parties. She used to go all the time when she was younger. Now they just weren't that interesting anymore. The last one she went to, a war had almost broken out over drunken grabbing of someone else's mate. That was one of the reasons why when the New Year came and went, she allowed it to pass without much celebration. On occasion, she would make a resolution. This year's was easy. She was going to destroy Kimmie before the end of the next intergalactic New Year, assuming of course that she didn't do it before it started.

The intergalactic New Year would come soon. Their calendar was similar to that of Earth, although the years were a bit longer. Every year the New Year's celebrations grew farther and farther apart until they finally caught up to each other again. This year they would be close, with Earth's New Year one week before the intergalactic New Year. Earth was one of the few planets that still celebrated their own New Year's event. The other planets that did were as backwards as Earth, if not more so.

Cerlina wanted to bring the New Year in with a bang of her own. However, she couldn't quite come up with a plan that would be felt around the world. Perhaps that wasn't entirely true. She could come up with a plan. However, it would take more time to plan and more resources than she had allotted to her currently. But it would have been so much fun to destroy cities systematically as the clock struck midnight.

That was a plan she would save for another day. She was going to destroy the entire planet; there was no doubt about that. However, she did want to go back to her original plan, Kimmie first, planet later. If Kimmie didn't suffer enough it was going to take the fun out of it. the only way she is going to suffer is if the process is slow and painful. Which meant she was going to go back to slow and painful and worry about the process of destroying the planet later. Once Kimmie was out of the way, she would have plenty of time to plan how she wanted to do that.

She had lots of thoughts as to how she wanted to help Kimmie ring in the New Year. She wanted to bring back the memories of her recent victory, blowing up the Youth Center. She had not been able to get to Kimmie again since then. Going after her brother had not quite gone the way she planned. She hadn't known the pathetic Earth brat would get a battlizer and figure out how to stop her in time. Then there was the attack at the mall. Of course, she hadn't really been optimistic for that one. It had been more for fun than anything else. In the end that hadn't turned out to be as much fun as she wanted. She did get to terrorize some citizens though; she would chalk that up as a positive.

Since her last attack, she had taken some time to think about what part of Kimmie's life she wanted to go after next. She had thought about people, but Kimmie was a bit too guarded still for her to get close to anybody important to Kim. She needed to rock her foundation a bit more, throw her off of her game a bit more before she could go after people. This left her with places.

She wanted to go after something sentimental. She had thought about some of the other places Kim had spoken fondly of during their time together on Phaedos. She used to talk about how she and the other rangers would hang out in the park and how that was where some of her most special memories with Tommy were. That was enough to make Cerlina want to destroy it.

At first glance, a park was not much of a target. However, after doing some carefully planned research, she knew how she could make it more worth her while. Her monster could cause enough damage with explosions and fires to not only do some serious harm to any part of the population that would be around, but in theory she could get him to start a fire so grand it would spread into the city, taking out whatever she could get lucky enough to get to. Assuming Kimmie did not interfere. However, maybe she could get lucky and light her on fire too.

She smiled as Malizor headed into the room. Finkus must have her monster ready by now. It is time to have a little fun.

* * *

It was still quite nice in the park as Rocky and Carri lay on their blanket drinking wine. The food had long been consumed but the romance still hung heavily in the air. Rocky glanced down at her as she took another sip. "I told you that you'd like it." He said as he leaned over and kissed her forehead.

She made a noise of agreement as she looked up at him. "It was good." She said with a smile. It was more than good. He had given her an escape from the stress of stories and deadlines for a while. However, it was almost time to get back to the real world. "But I'm going to have to call it quits soon."

"Can't you stay a little longer?" Rocky asked. He hated to see her have to go. He was fortunate his schools were closed today. The only thing on his agenda was to spend time with her. He wished he could have days like that more often but both of them had responsibilities and neither would let them be ignored. Maybe that would be his resolution this year, to make sure that they both took a day off occasionally to spend time together.

She leaned over toward him and gave him a kiss. "If you want to see me tonight you have to let me go."

Rocky went to kiss her back but before he got to her, they heard a loud noise and felt the ground rumble. Rocky pulled himself into a sitting position and Carri was quick to follow. "What was that?" she asked as she reached over and grabbed her cell phone. If something was going down she would be damned if she was not going to get the story even if it was only cell phone quality.

"I don't know." Rocky said as the noise repeated itself, this time a bit closer. They heard screaming and they both jumped to their feet. "Stay here." Rocky said, pushing her gently down.

Carri stood firm and rolled her eyes as she followed her boyfriend out. Ranger related or not, she was going to see what was going on. As they turned the corner, they saw the fire in the distance, starting to spread through the wooded area. Standing there, cackling at damage done was a monster.

"Hey!" Rocky yelled, trying to pull its attention away from the people. He watched as the monster turned and took a few steps toward them. It paused and held its arms out, the center of its gut opening up as something shot toward them. Rocky turned and jumped to the side, grabbing Carri and trying to cover her as he pulled them both to the ground. "Are you ok?" he asked after the explosion.

"Peachy." Carri replied gruffly. It was times like these she wished she was a ranger. That thing that fired at her deserved an ass kicking. "Go give him a hard time for me."

Rocky gave her a nod. He was especially glad she knew now, he wouldn't be able to protect them if she didn't. "Stay here." He said as he tried to draw the monsters attention away from her while he ran to morph.

She watched Rocky walk off, then set her phone to record and pointed the camera at herself. "This is Carri Hillard, reporting to you from Angel Grove Park where a monster has just started attacking." She said as she turned the phone around. She got a good shot of him launching a bomb toward the blue ranger before she turned and looked at the fire.

When she turned back, she couldn't find the monster. Much to her surprise, he found her. "I've got to quit meeting monsters like this." She muttered as he grabbed her and yanked her up. "Hey!" she yelled, kicking him in the face, "Put me down!" Of course, he wasn't listening. The only positive thing about him squeezing the life out of her midsection was that she still had her phone in her hand and she was still recording.

"You heard the lady." Rocky said from behind her as he hit the monster with his weapon. The monster fell back and Carri hit the ground. Rocky immediately ran up to her. "Are you alright?" He asked as he pulled her into a sitting position. She didn't look so good but he was praying it was nothing.

"Fine." She said with a sigh. "Thank you blue ranger." She added as she held up her still recording phone.

"You need to get out of here." Rocky said, wondering if the phone would pick up the tone in his voice or rather, his jumbled voice. When morphed rangers spoke, they didn't quite sound like themselves. It helped keep their identities secret.

"Sure." Carri replied as he helped her up.

He watched as she took off, knowing full well that she'd probably find a way to double back but not able to worry about it right now. He had the fire and the monster to worry about. Fortunately, his teammates were starting to join him.

"What have we got." Kim stopped short and groaned. A fire. Great. Just what they did not need to deal with. "Billy we've got a fire running through the park. I don't think it's safe for the fire department." She spoke quickly into her helmet's communications system. The fire department would get too close to the monster, and she doubted Cerlina would let them do their job. "You got any ideas?"

"On it." Billy replied, just as the monster laughed at them and started throwing bombs toward them.

"Rangers, I'd like you to meet some friends of mine." The monster said while he watched them scatter. As the rangers were starting to stand, a group of Cryobots joined them. "Now it's time to have a little fun."

"I don't think his idea of fun is the same as mine." Jason grumbled as he moved into fighting stance. This wasn't the way he wanted to spend his afternoon. He wanted to spend it relaxing, so he could be ready to party all night.

"Let's just do this." Karone said, as she was the first to run into battle with the Cryobots, Zhane following closely behind. The others quickly fell into a similar pattern, with everyone except Tommy and Kim going for the Cryobots. They both went after the monster while trying to keep an eye on the rapidly spreading fire.

"Anything Billy?" Tommy asked as he watched the fire rage on. If it continued at this rate, it would not take long to get to the city. From there the potential for disaster quadrupled.

"I'm working on it." The former ranger replied gruffly. Tommy's checking on him was not going to make this go any faster. "I'll let you know when I get something together." He was going to have to make something from scratch and quickly. He realized the potential for disaster but he did not exactly have anything on hand.

"Right." Tommy replied, ignoring the tone in Billy's voice as he called for his weapon and leaped onto the monster with it. It was seconds later when Kim joined him, only for both of them to get thrown off the monster quickly. They were both dodging his bombs before they knew what to do about it.

Kim was unfortunate enough to get hit by one, and the blast threw her violently across the battlefield. "Kim!" Tommy called out, resisting the urge to forget everything else and run to her.

The red ranger twitched but did not move and the monster headed toward her. "No you don't." Tommy warned as he ran to intercept him. As the monster threw him off, he looked over to see Zhane helping a groggy Kim to her feet. "You ok?" he yelled toward her.

"I'll be fine." Kim muttered just as a voice boomed into her ear.

"I've got the solution." Billy spoke quickly. "I've rigged your zord essentially with a giant fire extinguisher. It should have enough juice to stop the forest fire before it gets too far."

"Got it." Kim replied, grateful for the chance to sit down for a minute. "I need Sonic Zord power, now!" she cried out, her zord barreling toward her on her command. She wasted no time leaping toward the cockpit and setting in. She took a minute to look over the controls to determine how to work the giant fire extinguisher attached to her back.

As soon as she had an idea, she turned toward the trees. The fire was dangerously close to reaching the edge, where it would inevitably leap toward parked cars and buildings and anything else it could reach. Pressing a few buttons, she aimed the nozzle and let it go. A white blanket started to cover Angel Grove Park. Little by little, the bright orange flames that were once running violently through the area were collapsing. A few minutes later, nothing was left of Cerlina's little stunt except for smoke.

From her spot on the moon, Cerlina was furious. Her Cryobots were defeated, again, and Kimmie had put out the fire she had worked so hard to set without damaging anything but the environment. Sure, there would probably be some humans with burn trauma, but it was not anything close to what she wanted. For no other reason than to piss Kimmie off, she made her monster grow.

Kim watched, as the creature on the ground was suddenly as tall as she was. Plus it was shooting bombs at her that had also increased in size. "I could use a little help up here." She called down to the others as she dodged an incoming attack.

"We're on it." Tommy replied as the team shifted into position. "We need Sonic Zord power now!" he yelled as the remaining zords emerged from hiding and headed toward them.

As soon as the zords came into view, the rangers rushed to board them. It wasn't long before there were six zords attacking the monster, who was trying to get his bearings. "I think we should take care of the fire starter." Zhane's voice came through.

"Agreed. Initializing Megazord sequence." Kim said, indicating to the others that they should bring their zords together.

"We going for a slice and dice?" Jason questioned as his seat popped into the Megazord cockpit.

"Unless you've got something better." Kim replied as she went to hit the monster before he could fire another bomb at them.

"The slice and dice is one of my favorites." Jason replied with a grin. It was how they brought down most of their giant monsters during his tenure as a ranger.

They got another kick in on the monster and he stumbled backwards. Before he could recover, the rangers called for their Megazord Saber. As he stood up, they swung it down, slicing him in two with their powerful weapon. There was a small explosion as he fell, and Cerlina's latest creation was gone forever.

* * *

At the end of the fight, the rangers jumped to the ground. Tommy sighed as he noticed Carri emerge from her hiding spot, rapidly texting someone. She casually walked right on past the rangers, not paying them a bit of attention. Curiosity got the best of him. She had been after the story forever and she was ignoring them.

He could see Rocky tense up as he followed her. The path led to a picnic blanket that he found her collapsing down on as she went back to her glass of wine. It was obvious there had been two people here and he had a good idea who the other one was. Carri finally looked up and noticed him standing there before he could turn away. She was somewhat surprised. She really didn't know what to say to him. With nothing better to say, she simply smiled and praised his work. "Way to blow that piece of trash to pieces."

"What?" Tommy questioned, looking at her quizzically. She was acting excessively casual. She had to have something up her sleeve. Maybe she knew more than she was letting on. "No request for an interview?"

"Nah." Carri said as she reached over and grabbed her phone. "Unless of course you're volunteering. Then I'd be happy to oblige." She said as she wiggled the small device in the air.

Tommy turned and marched off, grabbing the blue ranger by the arm and pulling him off to the side. "What the hell is going on here?" he questioned. He was supposed to keep him updated. Either Carri knew something and Rocky was out of the loop, which was a serious cause for concern, or Rocky knew something and was not sharing. At the moment he wasn't sure which was the worst offence.

Rocky watched as Kim went to stand firmly by her fiancé and the other rangers slowly gathered around. "What are you talking about?" He tried to play it all casual. He had watched Tommy follow his girlfriend. He knew what the black ranger's suspicions were about in regards to Carri. He was afraid of what he would think about the truth. However, he supposed it had to come out sometime.

"There's a reporter over there," Tommy pointed in the direction of the blanket Carri was seated at, which was far enough away for her not to hear, "whose life story is unmasking us and yet she doesn't seem to be too concerned with the fact that we are within reach as we speak."

Rocky sighed. Tommy wasn't stupid and he was not going to let this one drop. "She knows about me. That's why she doesn't care anymore."

"Dammit Rocky what the hell possessed you to tell her?" Jason questioned with a growl. This was just great. Now she knew one of his big secrets. It was only a matter of time before she found out the other one.

"This… this isn't acceptable." Tommy said, his anger boiling over. Nobody had blatantly broken one of the rules before and he was at a loss as to what to do. "You can't just do that. I don't know what the hell you were thinking."

Rocky opened his mouth to defend himself at the same time Kim went to go in to lay it on to him even more. However, neither got a chance to speak as a female voice piped up from behind him. "It wasn't his fault you know. I mean not entirely. I went to surprise him and caught him morphing." Carri said as five morphed rangers turned to stare at her. She was the only woman in the world who would jump in as her boyfriend's defense against five pissed off power rangers.

Tommy wasn't sure whether he should be impressed by her standing up to them or to tell her it was none of her damn business. Before he could speak, Kim interrupted. "Thank you for your input but this is ranger business." She was trying to be as polite as she could in telling her to go away. Video of pissed off rangers tearing up a local reporter on the six o'clock news would not look good. It may be a good time to teleport back to the Command Center.

Carri rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Please you're arguing about me which makes it my business." She replied as she looked the rangers over. "Look if you think I'm going to blow your secret you've got nothing to worry about. I have known for over a week. If I wanted to tell the world who you were I would have."

Tommy could feel the headache coming on as he processed all of this. There was a lot to think about where this reporter was concerned. "You know about all of us?" Tommy replied, watching as Carri simply smiled smugly at him. He immediately turned back to Rocky. "What were you thinking? Did you assume because she found out about you she deserved to know about the rest of us?"

"What?" Rocky questioned, furious that Carri was insinuating that he told her who the rest of the rangers were. He had flat out refused. It was bad enough that she knew who he was; he was not going to spill his friend's secrets as well. "I haven't told her about anything except about me. That's all she knows."

Tommy turned back to the reporter, who still had the same smug look on her face. He was getting ready to lay into her but Kim put a hand on his chest. "Did Rocky tell you who we are?" she asked her directly.

"No. I did ask out of curiosity more than anything else. But he said it was your secret and he wasn't going to betray you." Carri replied, watching as the rangers relaxed a little. "That didn't mean I couldn't figure it out on my own. I'm not one of the best investigative journalists for nothing."

Finding out that Rocky was the blue ranger was the first piece of the puzzle. She respected that he wouldn't tell her anything about the other rangers. However, he didn't need to. She knew how long Rocky had been a ranger, all she had to do was look up his school records and find out who his friends were and from there she just connected the dots with all the information she already had. She had a good idea who the other rangers were for a few days now. But like with the information she had on Rocky, it was going to stay hidden away in the farthest corner of her mind, never to see the camera.

"There's no way you figured it out." Jason said with a huff. Although she was already on their trail, and if she knew who the blue ranger was she might very well have figured it out.

Carri looked at the White Ranger and thought about it for a moment. "Jason right?" Even though the voice was different, the mannerisms were the same as the guy she'd had drinks with and she was pretty sure he was a ranger. He crossed his arms over his chest and she turned toward the Red and Black rangers, who were by the way they were acting she assumed they were a couple. "And Tommy and Kim." She gave a stab at it as she turned toward the remaining two rangers. "You were the Silver Astro Ranger." she said as she pointed to the Green Ranger. She had to dig through tons of Angel Grove footage to figure that one out. And she still didn't have his name, mainly because he wasn't from this world. The pink ranger was the only one whose identity remained a mystery. She had done a lot of comparisons, and there was no way she had been a ranger in Angel Grove before.

"How did you figure that out?" Kim questioned, curiosity getting the best of her. She should have been furious. She should have been figuring out ways to wipe her memory clean so she would have no idea who the rangers were. Instead, she was just trying to figure out how she did it. She knew she was a threat to expose them, but she had no idea how she actually knew their identities.

Carri simply shrugged. "Investigative journalist, remember." It really was not that hard or that impressive. Of course, she would have been at it for a very long time if she hadn't known about Rocky.

Nobody was quite sure to respond to that. Rocky was the first ranger to break the silence. "So where do we go from here?" he asked. They had never really been in this position before. He was hoping that they would leave his girlfriend alone, but Tommy was pissed and that did not sit well for her.

"I don't know that we can trust her." Tommy said, glaring at Carri from behind his helmet. Keeping the secret for a week meant nothing.

"I don't blame you. I wouldn't trust me either." Carri said with a grin. Those who had secrets to hide hated it when she was on their story. She was good at getting to the truth and she was good at letting everyone know when she did. "Whether or not this means anything to you guys, I care about Rocky. I am not going to ruin his life by running the story. Nor do I want to ruin anyone else's. You guys have done a lot for this town and you don't deserve the media scrutiny that will come from this."

It was odd coming from her. Usually she was the first one to point the camera in someone's face. Usually it was because that person had something to hide, something that the public deserved to know. Like the Senator siphoning campaign money off into his own personal account. Or, the county inspector taking bribes to allow buildings to go up without meeting code. However, this was different. They didn't do anything wrong, anything to deserve this. They didn't look like they were buying it and she continued. "If you guys have done your homework, you know I'm the first person to break a story. It is why the network likes me so much. If I was going to run your story, I would have done it by now."

Jason couldn't help but snort. "She's got a point." If she has known for more than five minutes and has not aired it yet, she probably was not going to air it. That didn't mean she would not store it away for later, but this was the story of her career. She would not hesitate to put it out there if she wanted to.

"Still, who's to say if you and Rocky break up or even get into an argument that you won't run the story anyway?" Kim quickly pointed out. She was skeptical and she could tell that Tommy was as well. Outsiders had known their identities before but no one who could expose them on a national level like this.

"You just have to trust me." Carri said with a sigh. "I'm not the cold hearted bitch everyone thinks I am." She added. She had heard that phrase thrown around more than once by her competition. "And besides, you only have two choices. One is to trust me. The other is to lock me up forever. And I think somebody is going to notice if you lock me up."

"I say we trust her." Karone chimed in. It was partially her idea to just tell her and trust her in the first place. It would have saved them a lot of trouble.

Zhane shrugged. He had always thought along the lines that Karone did where Carri was concerned. Of course, he was not from Earth; whether or not she exposed them didn't much matter to him. "Me too." He added. It wasn't as if they had much of a choice. Except for a memory wipe, but that could get messy, especially with someone who was in the public eye as much as she was.

"I did catch the news last week." Jason said as he reached into the back of his mind and recalled the details. "You had some pretty off the wall theories about where the rangers came from." He thought it had been somewhat weird for her to come out and say some of the things she said. He had wondered why someone who was so good at her job would be so off base. Now that he thought about it, he was pretty sure it was because she was protecting their secret.

Kim looked up at Tommy. Jason was right; she had seen the reports too. She was tempted to let it slide for now. Besides, she was really close to a final product where trapping Cerlina was concerned and she wanted to get back to that before tonight. "Let's leave her and Rocky be." She said finally.

Tommy looked down at his fiancé. He was not convinced this was the best course of action. However, there really was not much they could do about it. They would have to keep an eye on her. Besides, as far as he knew she had no real evidence outside of Rocky's admission and her own sleuthing. It was not like Cassidy, who had recorded them morphing. "Let's go." He said firmly, shooting Rocky a look as he moved to teleport.

Rocky let out a sigh of relief as the rest of his team left. "Give me a second." He said to his girlfriend as he walked off to find a not as open place to power down. Of course, it wasn't like there was anyone around for miles. The bombs and the fire had cleared out anybody who was enjoying their afternoon in the park.

He jogged around until he found a secure spot and he powered down. At least the others knew she knew and they were not going to kill him for it. Maybe it was a good thing they found out. Maybe it would make things between him and Carri even better.

* * *

Later that night Kim sat at a small table in a club, waiting for Tommy to return with her drink. All the present rangers and several of the rangers from the past had gotten together that night to attend this party. They all wanted to bring in the New Year together, toast to years of friendships in the past and to what would come in the future.

They also wanted to silently toast the year that Kim was determined would bring the permanent removal of Cerlina from the moon. It had become her New Year's resolution. She rarely made resolutions, and when she did, she usually didn't manage to keep to them very well. This year would be different. This year she was going to follow through.

That was all she had been concentrating on over the last week. Fortunately, since the mall incident Cerlina had kept quiet. Until today that is. Today reminded Kim why she was jetting around so much looking for answers.

Angel Grove Park had never seen an attack of that nature before. There were a few civilian injuries from the monster's bombing, but most of the injuries had been minor burns from the fire that was set. The explosions that the monster caused really were not anything in comparison to the fire. The explosions had not done much damage to the park either.

The fire, well that was a different story. Most of the fire related damage that happened was evident in the trees, the bushes, and the grass. That was going to take a lot of work on the city's part to clean up. Not to mention one of the trees that the fire took out was over two hundred years old. It was the oldest tree in the town and there was a small plaque attached to the trunk that said so. Now it was gone.

Not only had it taken out greenery, but also there was a small playground nestled in the middle of some of the trees that was now a melted mess. It was not the only playground in the park, but Kim had fond memories of playing on it with her brother and now it was gone. Fortunately, Cerlina's fire had not gotten out into the city. That would have been a disaster.

Despite the fact that the city was safe, Kim was still more than just a little annoyed with the situation. There Cerlina went, attacking something else of sentimental value to Kim. She supposed she should be happy that Cerlina went after a place instead of a person. If she pulled another stunt like the one she tried to pull with her brother, things would have been much worse.

Still Kim had been angry that afternoon when the fight was over, which is why she spent the rest of the day on Eltar finishing up everything she needed to do to create the chamber that would trap and hold Cerlina. It took a lot of time and a lot of research, but she had what she felt like was a solid unit to trap the woman in.

Zordon's notes, for whatever they were worth, were scrambled and hard to understand. However, she did decipher something to follow with a bit of help from the Phantom Ranger. It led her across multiple worlds, talking to multiple people who knew Zordon and even one who had actually helped him put Ivan in his hyper-lock chamber. They had given her several different methods on how to contain Cerlina and in some of the places she went she was able to learn some of the relatively newer, more advanced methods.

She took all of her research and locked herself up with it, combing through it until she could come up with something that she was convinced would trap Cerlina and hold her for eternity. Then it was just a matter of putting it all together. That turned out to be the easiest part of that half of the problem. She finished her containment device and teleported herself back home just in time for Tommy to push her to get ready for the night's party.

The other part of the equation was where to put the containment unit. That had actually gone better than expected. She went with Karone's first suggestion and gone to Triforia to see if they would host her containment unit. They were hesitant at first but Trey helped push their decision in her favor.

Their agreement did come at a price. The Triforian's were doing a huge service for Kim, and even though it was going to benefit the universe to have Cerlina gone, it was still seen as a favor specifically done for the Red Sonic Force ranger. What they asked for in return was years of servitude from her. She bargained for the number and once they agreed they finally struck a deal.

It wouldn't be too bad. Given her unknown life span, they would allow her to stay on Earth for the remainder of Tommy's life so she could remain happily married to him. After he passed, she would need to report back to Triforia where she would mostly act as a ranger liaison for the planet, among other duties. The work would not be bad and she assumed it would be a small portion of her life to give up in exchange for them keeping Cerlina forever.

So now she had everything squared away and she had a decent plan for how she was going to get rid of Cerlina. She was ready to return home and jump into action. However, the minute she got there, she could tell Tommy was ready to relax and celebrate. She knew the rest of the team was looking forward to the evening's party as well. She simply didn't have the heart to pull that away from them right now.

It was not going to be easy to get Cerlina into that containment unit. She thought that perhaps it might be a good idea to give her team this night to enjoy themselves before going after Cerlina the next day. A few hours difference wouldn't hurt, and a daytime battle would benefit them more than a nighttime one would. For all of these reasons, she had chosen to keep her mouth shut on the subject for the moment.

Instead, she jumped out of her seat and smiled at the man who was bringing her a drink. "It's about time." She teased with a twinkle in her eye.

"Sorry beautiful." Tommy apologized as he handed her the drink while leaning in for a kiss. "I got caught up with Jason and Rocky." He explained with a smile. He was talking to the rangers and their dates, Jason's being some girl he met at a bar the week before and Rocky's of course being Carri. He would admit to being pleasantly surprised with the night's news report. He was going to back off of Rocky for now, although he'd still stay on alert.

The five of them had gotten caught up in conversation, mostly talking about the New Year and their resolutions. The rangers silently agreed that getting rid of Cerlina was at the top of their list, but what they said aloud was different. Tommy's spoken resolution was to marry the woman of his dreams, which got them all talking about the future and relationships. Before he realized what was going on, more time had passed than Tommy knew what to do with. Before long Tommy decided he needed to return to his future wife and bring her in on the fun. Besides, everybody was here and he wanted to gather all the rangers, past and present, together.

"Sounds like fun." She replied with a grin. She did need to go out and mingle with the other rangers. There would be plenty of time for worrying in the morning.

Tommy quickly slid his free hand into hers. "Let's go join the others. I think Billy and Trini have made their way over there as well." He was pretty sure he saw Adam, Tanya and Aisha heading in that general direction also. This night was going to be a bigger ranger reunion than the party the kids had thrown.

Kim gave his hand a squeeze. "I'm game. Let's go mingle." She replied before letting her fiancé lead her off to join the others.

* * *

Early the next morning the red ranger crawled out of bed. Tommy was still sound asleep, he didn't even flinch as she took a shower and got dressed. She decided to let him sleep a little longer and silently she went to fix herself a cup of coffee and took it over to the couch, staring out the small window.

She had a fabulous time the night before with the rangers and she was disappointed that it had to end. There were so many of them now living so close together. She was hoping that once they got this Cerlina situation taken care of, they could all get together more often. It seemed as though between this gathering and their last, Cerlina had managed to become front and center and was keeping her from having the time to visit the other rangers.

After today she intended for that all to change. She was going to take care of the Cerlina problem. Soon she would wake the rest of the team up and get them moving. There were plans to discuss and preparations to make. She wanted to let them sleep a little longer. After all, they had a late night the night before. Fortunately they were smart enough not to get drunk, as active rangers never knew when they were going to be called and couldn't afford to be intoxicated if they were.

She hoped this was a success. She wanted to get rid of Cerlina before the woman made good on her threats to destroy everything Kim cared about. There was no doubt in Kim's mind that she would do it, it was only a matter of time. So far, they had been more than a little lucky.

Kim continued to stare out the window, lost in her thoughts as she slowly drank her coffee. Eventually she tilted the cup back and there was nothing left. She held it in her lap and looked down, staring at the empty mug for a moment. Pulling her thoughts together, she took a deep breath and stood. It was time to gather her team and fill them in. It was time to get rid of Cerlina.


	24. Eliminating Enemies

**Disclaimer: **The rangers still belong to Disney, while everyone else is mine.  
**Author's Notes:** This is the last action related chapter of "Return to Action", although there will be one last epilogue chapter tying up some loose ends. Thank you all for reading this story and "Viva Las Vegas". I appreciate all the reviews and messages I have gotten in regards to both fics. Hope you all enjoy.

Return to Action  
"Eliminating Enemies"

It was what the Americans would consider to be early in the morning and Cerlina was sitting in her chair, where she had been planted for most of the time since the previous afternoon's failure, contemplating her latest loss. She had thought that the destruction was going to be simple. It was going so beautifully for a while. Until Kimmie ruined it all.

She had no solid evidence but she was fairly certain that Willie had given her the solution. This brought her back to a point that had crossed her mind before. Willie needed to go. He was too much of an asset to Kimmie. Of course, the rangers themselves were too much of an asset and they needed to be removed from the picture as well.

It was too difficult to get to the other rangers, even to get to Willie with all they had at their disposal. Rangers could morph, and if Willie saw fit he could stay locked up in that Command Center of his until his life expired. They weren't the easiest creatures to get her hands on. Yet she needed them out of the way. Kimmie would not be able to stop her on her own. Then she could guarantee that the red ranger would watch her world get destroyed before Cerlina finally sucked the life out of that thorn in her side.

It was quite clear that she needed to get rid of Kimmie's support team for her to be successful; it was just a matter of how she was going to do it. It was highly unlikely that they would simply surrender to her. She could try to capture them, although she would have to be stealthy. Any warning and they would morph or teleport off, avoiding capture.

In order to take them as her prisoners, she would need them to give up their powers. How did one get a ranger to surrender their powers? They were prepared to die fighting for their planet; they certainly would not give in. They would need some sort of motivation, some reason to comply with her demands. Threatening to destroy the city was not enough. She did that every day and the rangers stood up to her. What could she destroy that they would take note of?

As Cerlina tapped her fingers against her armrest, an idea came to her. People. They always take note of people. Not just any people though. She had to go after people the rangers cared about. She had seen Kimmie's support crew out and about with other humans before, ones that weren't rangers. They have been connected to certain non-rangers. Just yesterday, the blue ranger ran at her monster to protect that little reporter.

She would kidnap the rangers' closest friends. She had seen most of them with Kimmie celebrating the New Year when she went to spy on the rangers. It would be rather simple to take them away. They had no ranger powers, no teleportation powers, and quite frankly didn't stand a chance. It would quite possibly be too easy but she would not worry about that. It would be a fun break from normal.

Once she had them in her custody, she could demand whatever she wanted from the rangers. She knew what she wanted. Their unconditional surrender and possession of their Sonic Crystal. The thought of getting a hold of their crystal made her as giddy as a schoolgirl. She could harness its energy. She could use the Sonic Crystal against Kimmie. It would be glorious. Kimmie would squirm and protest and cry as the powers she gathered destroyed Earth. Of course, Cerlina was going to destroy Kimmie with her own hands. She had been waiting too long for this moment to do it quickly.

It was so simple she did not know why she had not thought about it before. She could have been capturing innocents' months ago. "Malizor!" she called for her right hand demon.

Fortunately, for his own sake, Malizor never strayed far. He never knew when Cerlina would call on him and even when she wanted time to think, he made sure he was within screaming distance. He would hate to think what would happen if she hollered for him and he was nowhere to be found. Hustling into the room, he walked up to Cerlina and gave her a slight bow. "Yes Cerlina?"

"Are there any worthwhile sub dimensions close by?" she questioned as the wheels were turning in her head. He nodded and she continued. "Are they occupied?"

"If you wanted their use it would be easy for me to clear them." Malizor promised her. Most occupied sub dimensions were full of galactic trash, especially in this area. Occasionally those trying to conquer Earth had used them. But now they were mainly occupied by beings on the run, be it from a vengeful wife, a poor life, or someone with more power than they had. It was easy to hide out near Earth. Earth was a low class planet, not many came out here looking for people. Most that considered it had to factor in the planet's multiple power ranger teams to decide if it was even worth it.

"Good." Cerlina replied, nodding her head in approval. "Clear one out and put a holding cell in there. Make sure it has top of the line security. I don't want things getting out through the front door or through teleportation."

"What will we be holding in there?" Malizor questioned. He imagined it involved something the rangers would be interested in, but to build a proper holding cell he needed to know what it was holding.

"About a dozen humans." Cerlina said as she contemplated who would be in the cell. "And five powerless power rangers." She added. They would give up their powers and she would put all but Kimmie in there with her friends. She would chain Kimmie up separately. She knew where to get a hold of restraints that Kimmie could not get out of.

She could have some fun before she took her to the palace and let her watch her use her crystal to destroy Earth. She would unleash Cratus and Rizikar along with Malizor and some Cryobots into the cage and they could sit there until the slaughter of Kimmie's helpless friends was complete. That was going to be simply the foundation for the devastation Kimmie would suffer over the next few hours.

"Once the cell is complete, send Cratus and Rizikar down with some Cryobots to guard the area. Then you are to report back here with me. We've got some collecting to do." Cerlina said with a laugh as she leaned back in her chair. It would not take long before she was dragging Kimmie around like her little pet while she got the revenge she so rightly deserved.

* * *

Kim stared at the collection of rangers standing in front of her. None of them looked anything close to awake, alert or happy to be there. They had a late night and she was starting them off with an early morning. She felt as though she had allowed them to party the night before but now it was time to get serious. They could not wait around for Cerlina to come after them again, they had to act first.

"What the hell is so important that you woke us up this early?" Jason grumbled as he crossed his arms over his chest. He had left his date's bed for Kim's impromptu meeting. He was disappointed. She was sexy and he enjoyed her company but that was probably the last of it he would get. The impression she was going to be under was that he screwed her and took off on her. He made it look that way. He couldn't tell her where he was going so he elected to slip out.

Kim ignored Jason's attitude as she started speaking to the others. "As I'm sure you all have noticed Cerlina is working hard to ruin everything I care about, everything we care about." Kim started, glancing around to make sure she had everyone's full attention. "We have to do something now before this goes any further."

"I suppose you have an idea?" Tommy questioned as he looked at her. He was somewhat upset. They were engaged to be married they were both reds. Yet she had been sneaking off lately and not telling him what was going on and now here she was taking about getting rid of Cerlina. He suspected she had been doing something and this all but confirmed it. He wished she had come to him with her ideas before now.

"Actually Karone had an idea, I simply took it and ran with it." Kim replied, watching as Tommy shook his head. She knew he felt left out but she did not want to say anything unless there was something to talk about. She did not want to get anyone's hopes up over something that may fall through. "We're going to trap her in a containment unit."

"A containment unit?" Jason questioned with a sigh. "So what, you want to put Cerlina in a dumpster?"

"Not a dumpster." Kim said. She could not blame Jason; she had had exactly the same reaction at first.

Rocky was quick to chime in. "Things in containment units don't tend to stay there." He knew of Rita's origins, and he was there when Ivan Ooze was released. He was not sure how containing her would help.

"Rocky's right." Tommy added before Kim could say anything. "There's a history of villains breaking out of places that they should have been locked for eternity in."

"This will be different." Kim assured him. She watched as Tommy opened his mouth to counter her. She spoke quickly before he could get any words in. "I did the research starting with Zordon's old notes. I know what works and what doesn't. I got information from others on how to essentially create a more advanced lock. She won't be able to escape."

"It's not just escape we have to worry about." Tommy finally got his chance to speak again. Most everybody who managed to escape had a little bit of help. "It's someone finding her and letting her out."

"I've taken care of that." Kim assured him. She did not miss the skeptical look he gave her and she continued. "The Triforian government has agreed to allow me to store the containment unit on their planet, where there will always be a ranger to keep an eye on it. It will be hidden, protected, and locked up tight with a lock that only I know how to open and close."

The rangers took a moment to consider her words. Some of them were skeptical, but others were ready to run with it. "So what kind of containment unit is it?" Zhane asked, breaking the silence.

Kim walked over to the controls and teleported it in. The other rangers crowded around it, everyone making their own assessment of the device. It was a cylinder, three feet tall and two feet wide. The design looked somewhat archaic until you peered closer to the top, where just underneath the transparent outer layer of the lid sat a locking device that appeared to be both magical and technologically advanced.

"Even if this thing works," Rocky started as he took a step back, "how are we going to get Cerlina into it?" He figured they were going to have to shrink her or something, and then get her to go in there, which was not something she would ever willingly do.

"We'll have to catch her." Kim said simply as she teleported a small box into the room. She opened the box and allowed the others to peer inside of it. When Jason reached out to touch it, she snapped the box shut and yanked it back. "Don't touch it, at least not morphed." She said quickly.

"So we're going to catch her with snot?" Jason questioned with a sigh, once again skeptical of the plan.

"It's not snot." Kim said with a scowl as she looked at Jason. "This stuff will automatically engulf whoever touches it. Once she's in here I can put it in the containment unit and put the lid on and it will shrink itself and whatever is inside to fit the container."

"And you think this will actually work?" Jason questioned. He did not care what Kim said, that damn stuff was snot. And last time he checked, snot didn't win battles.

"Of course it will work." Kim snapped. She was getting angry at the negativity in the room. Everyone had a questioning look on his or her faces. Karone seemed to be the only one completely behind her. "We just have to set it up right." She added.

Fortunately, for Kim, Karone jumped in to her defense. "I'm sure the containment unit is solid." Karone said. After all the containment unit was her idea, she knew it would work. "As for the green goop, I've only seen it used once. A demon wanted to trap Darkonda, only his plan backfired. Last time I saw the demon he was suspended in green stuff in a glass bottle in Darkonda's room."

Kim could not help the self-satisfied smile that crossed her face. She resisted the urge to reply to Karone's statement with a "ha". Instead of saying anything, she let Tommy speak. "So we can trap her. How should we do it?"

"We're going to have to set it up. If she sees us bring the containment unit in, she'll know what it is and take off." Kim said. The hardest part about this entire operation was keeping Cerlina in the dark. "We are going to have to pick a location where we can plant the containment unit there ahead of time, and trick her into showing up and getting close enough for me to trap her and quickly teleport her out of there. I have a few ideas about where to go and what to do, but I wanted to run them by you guys and see what you thought."

Tommy was about to tell her to lay out her ideas but he was interrupted by the blue ranger. "Say this works and we trap her. What about Malizor and the others?" Rocky asked. It was a valid question. Cerlina was at the top of the equation, but she was only a part of it.

"I imagine Cerlina's hired help will take off. If the boss goes down, there's no reason for any of them to stick around." Kim replied. She had thought long and hard about what was going to happen next. "Malizor is the only one loyal enough to care, and he may take off looking for her. When he can't find her, I assume he'll go back to Zarkan."

"And if you're wrong?" Jason questioned. It was a serious point to worry about.

"Don't forget it's Cerlina who actually has all the power. Everyone else is muscle, although some muscle is smarter than others." Kim pointed out. She seriously doubted anyone would stay behind. Their cause would be lost without their leader fueling it. "If for some reason they do stay, I think we're powerful enough to wipe the floor with them and send them running."

"I agree." Karone said with a nod. "None of them are the ambitious type. They are all out to serve, not lead. Take the leader out and they won't stick around for long." She had seen enough of their kind. Very few creatures wanted to be evil leaders and actually agreed to work under someone else. Most leaders did just that, led, no matter how small the group they took charge of.

"Everything sounds good in theory." Tommy said as he thought it all over. He still could not believe Kim had been working on all this and had not told him. He could not stay mad at her forever though, especially if they got rid of Cerlina and could get back to their lives together. "Now, what were your ideas for the actual battle?"

Kim smiled at him. Everybody seemed ready to do this. Everybody seemed like they were backing her up with her plan. Hopefully it won't take long to talk strategy and then they will be well on their way to getting rid of Cerlina.

* * *

As the rangers meeting was going on, Carri found herself sitting at her kitchen table, dressed and drinking coffee at an impossibly early hour. She never pulled herself out of bed this early. However, Rocky's communicator had gone off this morning and after he said goodbye, she could not get back to sleep. Instead, she took a shower, got dressed, and came out for coffee.

It was weird, she wasn't even curious as to what the rangers were up to this morning. She supposed she should have been concerned with a possible attack and what kind of news footage she could get from it. However, right now she really didn't care. Instead what was on her mind was her boyfriend.

Things seemed to be getting serious between the two of them. It was rare that she let things get serious. Yet here she was with a guy who was now sleeping in her bed more nights during the week than he slept in his own. To her surprise, she found herself enjoying it. She never let guys spend consecutive nights with her, she liked her space. However, there was something about Rocky. She couldn't explain it, hell she was not even sure she knew what it was. In the short time they have been together, she knew that this was the best relationship she had ever been in and this strange part of her was actually excited to see where it was going to go.

On the outside, Randy thought she was crazy. But she could tell that he was happy to finally see her happy with someone he could approve of. Of course, her mother had called her more than once screaming about her non-approval. One day she wanted to take Rocky to meet her parents. Not that her mother would change her mind but at least her father and her brother would be pleased that she had found a nice guy.

That thought stopped her short. It had been years since she took a guy to meet her parents, years since she'd even thought about doing so. Maybe she would talk to Rocky about it when he returned. It was not as if her parents lived far away.

She smiled to herself as someone materialized in her kitchen. She had seen the rangers teleport enough to know that it was not one of them and every muscle in her body tensed up with the appearance of the unwanted intruder.

"Remember me?" Cerlina said sweetly as she stared the woman down.

Carri was not sure what her next move would be. She simply smiled at the bitch who was trying to destroy the planet. "I don't like uninvited guests."

"Don't worry I wasn't planning on staying long." Cerlina assured her as she walked closer. She watched as the other woman stood and slowly inched back. "You don't stand a chance against me." Cerlina pointed out. It was the sad truth. Like every other friend of the rangers she had grabbed, this was going to be too easy.

As Cerlina reached to grab her, Carri tried to fight back. Finally, she was overpowered by the other woman who immediately teleported her away. The next thing she knew she was laying on the ground. She pulled herself to her feet and started to examine her surroundings. She was in some sort of cell, along with a bunch of other people.

"Enjoy." Cerlina said, giving them a little wave. She gathered Malizor and motioned for him to follow. They had a few more people to go after.

Carri glanced around the room, taking note of who was there. Some of them she had met before, and some she knew better than others. Some were dressed, and some such as Jason's date from the night before, were still in their pajamas. There was a small group that was whispering among themselves and Carri was pretty sure it was made up of former rangers.

Two of them were Jason's friends from high school, Zack and Trini. They both hung around in the six person group that included Jason, always wearing red, Kim, always wearing pink, and Tommy, either in green or white. Thanks to their preferences for their ranger colors, she could say with almost complete certainty that Billy was the blue ranger, Trini was the yellow ranger and Zack was the black ranger. And when Jason, Zack and Trini left it opened up Rocky's ranger spot, as well as two other spots she was pretty sure were filled in by Rocky's best friends Adam in black and Aisha, who was currently standing with Zack and Trini, in yellow.

Carri walked over to the group and the chatter immediately stopped. "What's going on?" she whispered as they turned toward her and smiled momentarily before their looks indicated that she was interrupting. She couldn't help but sigh. Apparently, the others either did not want to, or did not have time to tell them everything. "Look guys, I know."

"Know what?" Zack asked, somewhat surprised. She couldn't know their secret could she? The others had not said anything to him about it and he had not heard it on the news.

"I know what you guys were." She whispered as she glanced at the three of them. She was not sure they were buying it and she continued. "I know what my boyfriend is, what his friends are. I know that they're going to try to get us out of whatever mess we're in."

"How did you know?" Aisha questioned. She had just seen Rocky last night; he hadn't told her anything about any of this. Then again, he had spent most of the night firmly attached to his girlfriend's hips.

"Long story." She said simply. She did not want to get into it at the moment, they had bigger things to worry about. "The point is I know and so if you know anything about what's going on I'd like to be in on it."

Trini nodded. They were not completely sure what was going on. Carri was in the same boat they were, and at this point they could use as many people working on this as they could get. "We don't know much." She said softly as she moved to allow Carri into their circle. Even though everyone in that cell was together she still wanted to keep those who did not know somewhat out of the loop for the sake of the rangers. "Obviously they're collecting more than retirees."

"It looks like anybody who is friends with the current group is getting brought in here." Zack continued. He had recognized some of the faces of the other group that was gathering and starting to talk amongst themselves. He heard one of them say something about getting snubbed by the high and mighty. He supposed it did look that way. At least three of their little group were known throughout the community.

"She hasn't said what she wanted?" Carri questioned, watching as the others shook their heads. "Well I don't think she's collecting us all for a party." She said with a sigh. They were all bound to be in serious trouble.

"I'm sure she's trying to get the other's attention." Aisha pointed out. Why else gather friends of the current group. She was really worried about how they were going to get their attention. Just showing the rangers that she had their friends would be enough, but this woman was into action. She had blown up the Youth Center and almost burnt down the park. Aisha seriously doubted that her plans were that simple.

Zack made a face. That was what he was afraid of. "We may have to step up, protect the others." He said as he looked around. The three women agreed, even Carri who did not have a drop of ranger experience.

Before they could continue that thought, two figures were thrown in near them. The group recognized them as Adam and Tanya, two figures that Carri was pretty sure were former rangers as well. As Adam and Tanya stood, known rangers Andros and his pregnant wife Ashley were tossed in right beside them. Adam and Tanya walked over to join the others as Andros helped Ashley stand, hovering close to her as he led her to the group of former rangers.

"What's going on here?" Andros asked, hoping the others had an answer. They had been violently taken from their home. Andros tried to fight Cerlina, but she had grabbed Ashley and threatened to kill her if Andros did not come quietly. He did not feel as though he had a choice. There was no doubt she would kill his wife, and since she had powers and he had none he had to go with her and try to figure something out later.

Cerlina spoke before the others could answer. "Don't worry. You'll find out soon enough." She assured them. "First I need to go talk to the rangers. I'll be back for you all later." She said as she turned and walked off. "Enjoy your last hours." She called as she disappeared.

"I don't think I need to point out how bad that sounded." Adam said as he noticed the worried looks they all carried. He absently reached into his back pocket before remembering that he did not carry his coin on him all the time. It had been tucked away at home. He wished he had the ability to morph. However he was pretty sure that morphing ability or not, they were not going to go down without a fight.

* * *

Kim sat in the back of the group of rangers, half listening as Tommy went over what their plan was one final time. She had everything under control; most of it was her idea anyway. So for the moment she was letting Tommy take over. She figured it was the least she could do for keeping all of this from him in the first place.

"So then everybody understands what we have to do?" Kim asked once Tommy finally finished.

"Let's take the bitch down." Jason replied, agreeing in his own way. In theory, the plan was foolproof. Plus he was in a hurry to get to it and get rid of Cerlina forever. Of course that was going to mean he was out of action, again, but if it meant the world was safe he would take it.

"Alright so I'll." Tommy stopped short as a loud beeping noise echoed throughout the Command Center. "What was that?"

"An outside communication." Billy said. He could not imagine who was trying to contact them, unless it was another team of rangers. Doing a quick examination, he discovered the source. "It's coming from a sub dimension close by."

"I don't suppose we have any contacts hiding out." Karone said with a frown. She doubted anybody the rangers would deal with hid in sub dimensions. Those who were evil tended to stake claim on sub dimensions in order to do things in secret.

"No one I know of." Billy replied with a frown. The chances were good that it was Cerlina. "Shall I answer it?"

"Put our caller up on the viewing screen." Kim said. The rangers shifted at once, Kim standing at the front of the group and Tommy firmly beside her. Seconds later an image they knew all too well appeared in front of them. "Cerlina." She stated.

"Kimmie. Good to see you, as always." Cerlina replied rather cheerfully. She noticed the red ranger's look of disgust and she laughed. This was going to be too much fun.

Tommy noticed the two staring each other down and he spoke up. "What do you want?" he questioned. He wondered if she knew what they were planning to do. Why else contact them moments before they were getting ready to permanently rid themselves of her.

Cerlina chuckled. "Always the serious ranger getting right down to business." She said as she glanced briefly toward the black ranger. She had heard more tidbits about him as of late from other sources around the galaxy. Apparently, he was known as quite the ranger and was feared by those in the evil community that knew of him. Cerlina did not find him as much of a threat.

"If you don't have anything for us, we'll be getting back to our business." Tommy said sharply. He had seen her type before, always wanted to play with the rangers before they dropped their bomb. Tommy reached out toward the controls as if he was going to cut the transmission short.

"Oh I have something for you." Cerlina assured them as she stepped aside and the view zoomed in. The rangers saw the cage; saw their friends in there, some of them more frightened than others. Their friends disappeared from view and Cerlina was before them again. "The question is do you have something for me?"

"Let them go." Kim said in a hard tone unlike anything her friends had ever heard from her before. Kim felt guilty about what was going on. Cerlina had captured civilians, civilians that meant a lot to her and the other rangers. This had to have happened while they were in the Command Center, as she knew for a fact Jason and Rocky had gone home with their dates the previous nights, dates that were now Cerlina's prisoners. If she had gotten the team together during the night and not let them party, none of this would be happening now.

"I can't let them go until you deliver my gift." Cerlina replied. She had gotten to Kimmie, she could hear it in her voice. She did not think she had ever made the red ranger that angry and it thrilled her.

"What gift?" Kim questioned, the same tone in her voice as she crossed her arms over her chest. She did not like the way this was going.

"I forgot I hadn't made that part clear yet." Cerlina said with a grin. "The six of you are going to join me down here and give me your Sonic Crystal." She said, watching the expressions of the rangers.

"Go to hell." Kim hissed. They could not give her the crystal, they did and they were all through.

"Perhaps." Cerlina said with a shrug. "But I'm sending you first." If Cerlina believed in a hell, she would like to believe it was a place that held all of her enemies. She grinned at them and turned to walk off, stopping short before she forgot to add her favorite part of the puzzle. "And you don't have all day to come find me, there is a time limit. Starting a half an hour from now I am going to kill one of your friends every five minutes until I get what I want." She figured a half an hour was an appropriate amount of time for them to gather their crystal and figure out how to get into the sub dimension and find her. "See you soon." She said with a wave as the screen went black.

Rocky was the first ranger to break the silence. "How are we going to save them?" he asked. His girlfriend and some of his best friends were going to die soon if they did not act.

"Any chance we can teleport them out?" Jason questioned, glancing over toward Billy. He was surprised to see the girl he had gone out with a few times in there, although he had woken up in her bed this morning. It would be nice if they could just teleport them out, wipe some memories, and send them on their way.

Billy shook his head. He wished it was that simple. "Cerlina's blocking it with some kind of magic. I cannot teleport anything into or out of the cell. Give me some time though and I can calibrate the teleportation system to teleport you directly to Cerlina in the sub dimension."

"Get started on that." Kim said quickly as she turned toward the others. Her mind was moving swiftly to come up with her next course of action.

"Is it too late to go with our original plan?" Zhane questioned. There was a possibility that they could still lure Cerlina out into the open.

"Not without risking their lives." Karone replied. Cerlina would kill them, there was no doubt. She was not going to put her brother and his wife in any more danger than they already were in. She shook her head. Andros must be having a fit right about now.

"Their lives are in danger anyway." Kim said matter of factly. She had no doubt that their friends were going to die unless they captured Cerlina today. "There's no way she's going to let them out alive. If we give her our crystal, she will see to it that we never leave there alive either. At least the rest of you, I doubt she wants to kill me that easily."

"So then we won't give her our crystal. We'll show up and fight." Rocky replied. Time was ticking away and he was feeling somewhat anxious, ready to get moving.

"We can still trap her in the sub dimension, right?" Tommy questioned, glancing toward Kim briefly for conformation. Kim nodded and he continued. "We'll go down there, unmorphed so she thinks we're giving her the crystal then we'll attack, keeping her away from our friends until Kim can trap her."

"That might work." Kim said as she took a moment to think it over. "But it won't be easy. We can't go down there equipped to do this, she will know. Billy," she paused, getting the attention of the former ranger who was working quickly, "I'll need you to keep communications open. When I give the word send down my box so I can trap Cerlina in a bubble. The moment I have her you'll have to send the containment unit down so we can trap her inside."

Kim paused and Billy nodded in understanding before she continued. "Malizor and all the others are guaranteed to be there and they'll be a major factor. You're going to have to teleport her back here immediately and I'll follow and lock it, sending it away before anyone knows what happened." Kim had a path she was leading the containment unit on, it was not going straight to Triforia. She could not risk someone seeing where she went and having the information getting back to Malizor.

"And you think this will work?" Rocky questioned, as he looked toward the duo that he considered the team's leaders.

"It has to work." Kim replied simply. "Otherwise we're all dead." She had no idea if Cerlina had some sort of contingency plan for them attacking. She had no idea how much time they had to trap Cerlina once it was obvious they were not giving into her demands. For all she knew Cerlina was prepared, and the minute they attacked she would have her friends killed while they were trying to figure out how to get into the cage. However, they had no other options; they had to take this chance. She glanced toward Billy as he worked to get the teleportation system calibrated. One way or another, this would all be over soon.

* * *

Most days Cerlina had no concept of time. Today however, she was watching the clock as it ticked slowly toward the thirty-minute mark. The more time that ticked away, the angrier she got. Surely these rangers would show up and give her their crystal. Why the delay? Did they really think she would not kill their friends?

If they had that much of a lack in faith in her, it was disheartening. They should know by now that she would kill or destroy whatever she needed to in order to get the job done. What if they weren't going to show up at all? What if they were going to sacrifice their friends to save their crystal? That did not seem like a Kimmie thing to do at all. The whole point of Kimmie trying to stop her was to save everyone they cared about, not allow them to die in her hands.

Cerlina sighed as she watched the clock tick off another minute. Either way, the rangers had made their choice. It had been a half an hour and there was no sign of them. She was disappointed that she was not getting her crystal yet. Then again, there were things to be happy about. She was getting her opportunity to kill one of the ranger's friends. She could not wait to see the anguish on their faces when they finally arrived and saw the pile of bodies.

Marching over toward the cage, she grabbed the small device that was in Rizikar's outstretched hands and she glanced at the cage. The question was who to choose first. There was a small group in the center that stood there quite defiantly given their circumstance. She did not like that. These were the ones that gave the others some sort of feeling of hope. These were the ones that needed to go first. She locked eyes with the pregnant one as her husband stood protectively in front of her. Not a bad first choice. She would get two with one swipe.

"You're not going to get away with this." Carri said with a growl as Cerlina's head immediately snapped in her direction. She didn't know why she spoke up; maybe it was because she was the only one who had actually seen Cerlina this close before. However, she did not like the way she was looking at their group, and she especially did not like the way she was looking at the one member who was too pregnant to properly defend herself.

They had discussed several ways they could possibly protect everyone, and none of their plans involved Ashley on the front line. It quickly appeared as though Cerlina had forgotten about Ashley as her eyes locked with Carri's. For a split second, Carri wished she had not opened her mouth. Then her wishes changed. She wished she was a power ranger, or had been a power ranger, so she would have a better sense of what to do now that she had been singled out. She would have to settle for standing tall and doing whatever she could think of in her power to stay alive.

Cerlina hit a few buttons on the device, opening a small hole in the cage. She reached in and grabbed Carri's hair, yanking her out quickly and closing the hole before anyone could protest. She thrust the device back into Rizikar's hands; briefly watching him set it aside as she marched Carri toward the center of the cave. She pulled the woman toward her, yanking her head back as she grabbed a knife from her belt. "You can thank your ranger friends."

"Cerlina." Kim's voice rang out sharply through the room.

Cerlina stopped for a moment, still holding her knife in one hand and her victim in the other. "I see you've arrived to give me your crystal."

"Yes." Kim spoke, trying her hardest to ignore the looks of the other rangers. They were upset and ready to attack but they had to do this the right way. It was their own fault it got this far. They had trouble calibrating the teleportation system to get in here. "Just let her go."

"Oh no." Cerlina said shaking her head. "You missed my first deadline. I promised you a dead friend."

"Don't!" Rocky exclaimed, willing to do anything to keep his girlfriend from dying. Kim glanced over at him but he ignored her. "We're going to give you the crystal." He tried to assure her.

"Yes you will." Cerlina said, loosening her grip momentarily as she looked at the ranger who was practically begging for the life of his special friend. "After I kill her."

Carri had heard enough already. She didn't stand a chance, no matter how much pleading her boyfriend did. As Cerlina temporarily loosened her grip on her hair, Carri mustered all her strength into a kick that she had learned from Rocky's class. Taking a deep breath, she connected with Cerlina's midsection. The surprised villainess dropped her and she moved back as quickly as she could. Cerlina charged and seconds later, the blue ranger was on top of her. Carri was somewhat relieved but she knew the battle was nowhere near finished. As the rangers started into the fight, Carri moved off to do what she thought she needed to.

Kim saw Rocky's girlfriend take off but could not pay her any more attention than that as she ran to attack Cerlina. Her first instinct was to go to the others, to help their friends and get them to safety. However, the reality was that they would never be safe as long as Cerlina was alive. She knew she was going to have to go after her first.

That was turning out to be easier said than done. She and Rocky started off strong in their battle against Cerlina. For a brief second she thought it was going to be easy to trap her at this rate. If she could back off just a little bit, Rocky could keep her occupied while Billy teleported the first phase of her plan down to her. No one would be able to help Cerlina. Malizor was busy with Tommy, Jason was battling Cratus and Karone and Zhane were keeping Rizikar busy.

In the blink of an eye, the dynamic changed. Someone had summoned the Cryobots. This time it was more than a handful of Cryobots they had to worry about; it was more than they had ever seen in any battle. Suddenly the team was dividing their attention between the Cryobots and Cerlina and her gang. There went their advantage and any hope of her getting a clean shot at Cerlina.

She flung Cryobots away as quickly as they were coming at her. Cerlina kept inserting herself in the mix and that did not make things any easier. Cerlina threw Kim back and as she pulled herself to her feet, she found herself in the center of a ring of Cryobots. Before she could decide which one to attack first, a Cryobot flew out of nowhere and landed into two of them, knocking all three to the floor. Standing in the gap that the Cryobots made was the former green ranger. "How?" Kim questioned as she cocked her head to the side.

Adam grinned. "Carri found the key." He replied. Once the commotion started, it had been easy for Carri to snatch the device that she had seen Cerlina use to pull her out earlier. From there it was simply trial and error. Everyone escaped, and there were several pairs of hands now jumping into the fight. He was not sure how much damage they would actually manage to do, but if all else failed they would settle for being a nuisance to the Cryobots.

Kim smiled and nodded. If the rangers could destroy some of the Cryobots and the others could keep the rest occupied, she might actually have her shot. Kim decided it was time to switch into battlizer mode to do as much damage as she could to the Cryobots before turning her focus toward Cerlina. Kim maneuvered next to Tommy as she blasted a few of the Cryobots out of the way.

"Do you think we have a shot?" Tommy questioned as he glanced briefly toward Cerlina who was busy tormenting Jason and Karone.

Kim shrugged as she destroyed three more Cryobots. "It's now or never." She replied. She honestly did not know where it was going to go from here.

Tommy gave her a slight nod as he glanced around the room. There was another group of Cryobots that could use their attention. He led the way, with Kim closely behind him and they started to battle more Cryobots. Disabling or destroying them was not very easy, but being a ranger certainly helped. He doubted the others were having any luck actually getting rid of them, but it was nice that they were there to provide a distraction.

Kim ignored Tommy for the most part and put all of her focus into the Cryobots. After this group was toast, she turned back toward the black ranger. "Shall we keep going?" she asked as they glanced around the room. However, there was not much more to go back to. Karone was assisting the non-rangers, taking out as many of the remaining Cryobots as she could while the others knocked them back. Zhane had turned his attention to Rizikar now that the Cryobots had dwindled in number. Rocky had engaged in a battle with Cratus, Cerlina was still facing off against Jason and not paying anyone else much attention, and Malizor was all alone.

"I'll distract Malizor." Tommy said as if reading Kim's thoughts. This was going to be a good a chance as any, before someone sends down a monster or more Cryobots or something else to make the situation more difficult. "You get Cerlina out of here."

"I'll try my best." Kim said with a grin as she powered her battlizer down. Now was the time she needed speed and agility, not an arsenal. She watched as Tommy took off, attacking Malizor seconds later. The giant red demon turned his focus toward the black ranger and Kim glanced around, making sure everyone was still distracted.

Once she was satisfied that no one was paying her any attention, she took off running toward Cerlina. "Billy, teleport my box down." She spoke through her helmet in a whisper.

The box appeared in her hands. Jason saw it teleport down and he knew he had to keep Cerlina distracted long enough for Kim to act. He was doing a good job, he had figured out what to say to keep her focus on fighting him. Jason kicked her and Cerlina retaliated by throwing him back, leaping on top of him seconds later.

"Now what do you have to say for yourself ranger?" Cerlina said with a grin. Jason was one of Kimmie's oldest friends, taking him out first would be special.

Jason huffed. "How about rot in hell." He said as Kim jumped over them and dumped the contents of her small box onto Cerlina's head.

"What the?" Cerlina stopped as Jason scooted back and she stood. She was quickly being covered head to toe in green ooze. She knew exactly what this was for and what it did. "How dare you." She spat, watching as some sort of containment unit teleported down beside Kimmie. "No… no this can't be." She hissed. She was all but trapped and no amount of effort on her part would free her before Kimmie could trap her. "Malizor!" she yelled.

Malizor's head snapped in Cerlina's direction. He watched as Kim attempted to contain her. That was not going to happen, not on his watch. He threw the black ranger aside and ran to Cerlina's aide. Malizor laughed as three civilians jumped on top of him. "You can't stop me." He bellowed as he cast them aside.

Zack, Adam and Carri may not have been able to physically stop Malizor. However, they slowed him down for a second, and a second was all Tommy needed to recover and attack. As Malizor ran forward again, he got slammed in the face with Tommy's power weapon. He stopped briefly and the black ranger started a series of attacks, not letting up. By the time Malizor was able to fight back and push forward, Cerlina was completely contained in Kim's containment unit. He tried to jump toward her but the pink ranger jumped in his way as well. Then the containment unit was teleported away, followed by Kim.

"You won't get away with this." Malizor warned as he attacked the pink ranger.

"It looks like we already have." Karone replied with a smile as she fought back. They had finished off the rest of the Cryobots seconds before. Now the others were left with Malizor, Rizikar and Cratus to fight. She was not sure that was going to last long. Some of the civilians were closing in, ready to step up and join in if they found a good opportunity. They would not be able to fight, but they could at least drive home the point that the game was over and the rangers won.

Malizor refused to listen to the pink ranger and he attacked her with all his fury. He continued the attack as the black ranger joined in. Neither of them would be enough to stop him and keep him from finding Cerlina. All around the room those remaining were still fighting with a fury.

"It's over." A voice called out saucily from the other side of the room. Everyone turned to see that Kim had returned. "Cerlina's gone. You won't be able to find her." She said pointedly.

"You're wrong." Malizor growled as he looked at the female leader of the rangers. "I will find her and together we will rip you limb from limb." He respected Cerlina, he liked working for her. She was evil to the core and he had sworn his allegiance to her. He could not take that back just because Kim had won this round.

Kim nodded as she had expected this might be Malizor's answer. Although she wasn't worried. The containment unit had been delivered and she had taken so many roads to get there nobody would know what was going on. "Even if the impossible happened and you managed to get the containment unit, you'd never be able to unlock her. Face it, you're all currently unemployed."

Malizor glared at her with his hard, cold eyes and Cratus and Rizikar paused to think about what the red ranger just said. Kim smiled at them all from behind her helmet and continued. "The way I see it you have two choices. The first is to stay here and die, the second is to leave with your tails between your legs and go find someone else to bother."

Cratus glanced briefly toward Rizikar. They were nothing more than the hired help. They had been brought here to work for someone very powerful, someone who now was no longer able to employ them. Neither liked the idea of staying to fight Kim, who had just gotten rid of Cerlina, a woman who both were aware could take either of them out without much effort. Perhaps it was time to go see whom else in the galaxy needed warriors.

Malizor watched as Cratus and Rizikar took off. "Traitors." He yelled as the disappeared. "You will not get rid of me that easily. I will be back." If he could not find Cerlina he would return to Zarkan, see if perhaps he would help. He gave Kim one last look as he disappeared as well.

"Are they gone?" Jason's date from the night before squeaked from the corner where the others were hiding.

"Yes, yes they are." Kim said as relief washed over her. They were actually gone. Cerlina had been trapped, Cratus and Rizikar would not be back and Malizor… well she was certain he would give up eventually. He would find someone else to work for or Zarkan would give him something else to do. "Let's head back." She said as they were all teleported to the Command Center.

* * *

An hour later, the only ones left standing in the Command Center were the past and present rangers along with Carri. Everyone else had their memories wiped and they got sent back to their homes where they would forget any of this ever happened.

Tommy was inclined to wipe Carri's memory as well and Kim had considered the idea. However, the reporter had been firmly attached to Rocky's hip since they returned and the more she watched the two of them, the more she was inclined not to do it. She did not want to take away the memories of what she had with Rocky by erasing all knowledge of the rangers. She could not do that to Rocky.

Besides, the fight was over. They were not current rangers any more; there was not a story there for her to tell. And Kim considered it her thank you for Carri's freeing the others and lending the rangers a hand. Without the distractions of the others, the fight may have gone in an entirely different direction. Kim smiled as she glanced around the room at everyone who had stayed.

Andros returned the smile as they made eye contact. He had not fought with the others; he had stayed back with his wife to help fend off anyone that might be inclined to come in their direction. They were lucky that no one did, and he felt even luckier that Billy's scans revealed that both Ashley and the baby were fine. He squeezed his wife's hand and she glanced up toward him.

Ashley was quite relieved that Cerlina was gone. Her husband had been so on edge lately. Perhaps he would loosen up now that the immediate danger was gone. "So we don't have to worry anymore?" Ashley questioned aloud.

"I don't think so." Kim replied as turned her attention toward Ashley. "Cerlina's trapped, Rizikar and Cratus won't be back, and I'm not worried about Malizor."

"So that's it then?" Aisha asked. It would be nice for her friends if they could go back to leading normal lives.

Kim glanced toward Billy who nodded in conformation. "I have completed all of my scans." Billy spoke quickly. "There are no signs of life on the moon."

"Meaning?" Carri questioned, hoping somebody would explain it for those in the room who hadn't been clued in already.

"That's where they set up shop." Rocky said as he glanced down at the woman in his arms. He really thought he was going to lose her today. He was so happy that they were here, now, and that this was all over. He had all the time in the world to really explore his relationship with her. "If the moon is clear, they're all gone."

"Then it really is it." Zhane said as he glanced toward his best friend and grinned. Now he could stop going nuts all the time. Maybe they could finally have a conversation that did not involve Cerlina.

Kim smiled and nodded, even though technically it was not over for her. She still had the Triforians to repay not to mention her other ranger related responsibilities. Nevertheless, Cerlina was gone, and the world that she loved was safe from her wrath. Tommy was safe from her wrath. She could go back to worrying about work and her wedding and her future with her husband.

Zack glanced down at his watch. It was still fairly early in the morning, too early for the celebration they needed to have. He thought for a moment as he glanced up at the others. "How about we all go home, relax, and then meet for a late lunch and celebratory beers."

"You don't have to ask me twice." Jason said as he slapped his old friend on the back. After the way this morning started, he could use a few celebratory beers.

Zack looked around as slowly the others in the room started to agree. Even Andros and Ashley wanted to come along, despite the fact that Andros did not drink and Ashley could not. Getting rid of Cerlina was a major event; it deserved some sort of celebration. Kim and Tommy were the last to agree and once everyone had said yes, Zack came up with a time and a place.

"Let's go." Carri said, grabbing Rocky's hand and giving him a seductive look. She wanted to get her boyfriend home alone for a bit before they were due to meet the others.

Rocky looked at the others in the room as Kim raised an eyebrow at him. He grinned sheepishly and turned back toward his girlfriend. "Alright. Later." He said toward the others as he teleported them out.

"I wonder what they'll be doing." Jason said as Kim rolled her eyes. Jason laughed and she sighed as he grinned at her. After their amusement passed, Jason spoke. "I'm out of here too." He said before teleporting away as well.

After Jason left the floodgates opened, and more and more of the room cleared out until only two stood standing. Tommy turned and swept his fiancé up, pulling her into a kiss. Their lips stayed firmly together until Kim pulled them apart. "Maybe we should go home and do this." She said with a twinkle in her eye.

"Maybe." Tommy replied as he briefly glanced around the Command Center. "Do you think we'll ever need this place again?" he asked.

"Let's hope not." Kim replied. It was an optimistic thought that no one would ever need the Command Center again. Still, Kim had to hope that it wasn't going to be called into action any time soon.

"I'm glad it's over." Tommy said as he briefly locked eyes with Kim. They had a future together, a future he was looking forward to going home and getting started on. A future that would not involve him worrying about Cerlina, about what she was going to do to Kim. He did not think he could be any more grateful.

"Me too." Kim said as she put her arms around his head and pulled him back into her, locking his lips with hers. So much would change for the better for the two of them now and she could not wait. Last year her life was going in a completely different direction. Then she met Tommy in Las Vegas and everything changed. Now she finally felt as though she was going on the path she was destined for.

As much as Tommy was enjoying the affection, he was the one to stop the kiss this time. "What happened to doing this in the comfort of our own home?" He teased.

"Mmm." Kim replied with a nod as though she was thinking over what he said. She grinned at him and pulled him into her yet again, kissing him thoroughly. Tommy was so wrapped up in her lips that he did not even notice when she teleported them both home, where they could continue sharing their affections.

With Tommy and Kim gone, there was not a soul left in the Command Center. The building that had been the center of attention for the past few months was empty. With Cerlina gone the rangers could put this all behind them and go back to living their lives, although none were quite on the same path as before. Old friendships and relationships had been rekindled while new ones were formed. Rangers who had not held a morpher in years were reminded of what it was like to be a hero. For better or worse, Cerlina touched them all.


	25. Wedding Bells

**Disclaimer: **All known Power Ranger characters belong to Disney. Kim's family was created by KSuzie and is borrowed with her permission. All other characters belong to me.  
**Author's Note:** This story had to end the way it began. With Kim and Tommy :) I couldn't leave the fic without at least letting them say "I Do". They always have been and always will be my favorite PR couple.  
Much thanks to KSuzie who has helped me bounce ideas throughout "Return to Action". Also thanks to hewhoreaps for helping me do the edits on the chapters. One last thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed both this story and the original fic, "Viva Las Vegas".

Return to Action  
"Wedding Bells"

Kim sat in a chair in a small room, facing the room's one mirror as Aisha, Trini and her mother fretted over her. She was starting to feel nervous, although she knew she should not be. Out of everything that had happened since she ran into Tommy a little over a year ago in Las Vegas, this was the easiest.

"I think she looks fabulous." Aisha said as she grinned at Kim.

Kim smiled back. "Thank you." She replied. Over the last few months, ever since they trapped Cerlina, she had seen more of Aisha. Especially since she asked her to be co-maid of honor with Trini. It was nice. She traveled to Angel Grove on occasion to see Aisha, and Aisha came up to Reefside some to see them.

Reefside was where they had been living since shortly after the beginning of the year. They were able to go back home after they had taken care of ranger business. There had not been much ranger business left. They searched Cerlina's base and found it to be abandoned, Cratus and Rizikar were long gone and there was no sign of Malizor. Once they decided things were quiet, they moved home.

Tommy was happy to have his house back, complete with his basement Command Center. He was also happy to get back to teaching at Reefside, where he took over his classes for the final two quarters of the year. She had not been as lucky. Her job had not been waiting for her when she returned. However, with a little help from a new friend, she was able to land herself a job on Fox's local morning show. It was similar to the job held in Miami, and she was now California's gymnastics star returned home. It had been a long time since she actually won, but the viewers did not seem to mind.

Kim was so deep in her own thoughts, she hardly noticed Trini nodding her head vigorously in agreement with Aisha. "She looks just better than we imagined for this moment when we were fifteen."

"This moment?" Kim questioned with a twinkle in her eye. "You mean my wedding?"

"I mean your wedding to Tommy." Trini corrected. From the moment Tommy came into Kim's life, the remaining rangers knew their journey would end with a walk down the aisle. It was just a bit rockier of a road than they expected.

Kim simply smiled and tried her hardest not to blush. She and Trini had often talked about her wedding to Tommy when she was fifteen. She had abandoned that dream for years; she never thought it would happen. Of course, the other part of that dream wedding was her double wedding with Trini. Trini had her own dream wedding, one that was currently ending in divorce.

She was actually pleased about Trini's divorce ending. It moved her back to Angel Grove and it got her together with Billy, a match that Kim had always thought would have happened years ago. Trini and Billy were very happy together. Kim was quite pleased with the good fortunes of her two friends. She was waiting for Billy to ask Trini to move into his new house with him. She kept teasing the former blue ranger that the house needed a feminine touch. She was hoping he would get the point.

She would like to see him ask Trini to do more than just move in. She wanted to see her two friends get married. She doubted he would ask before the divorce papers were signed, which would not happen until close to the end of the year, after their legal one-year separation period passed. Until that point, she'd settle for simply seeing her two friends living together.

Kim felt her mother come up behind her and put something in her hair. "Here you go sweetie. This is your something blue." Mollie said as she fastened the clip with the simple blue jewels into an appropriate spot.

"I helped pick it out." Charlotte, Kim's junior bridesmaid chimed in as she skipped over to stand beside her mother. She had fun helping with the wedding. Especially since that meant more time spent around the cute guy her half sister was about to marry.

"Thank you." Kim replied as she absentmindedly reached up and touched it. She was glad to have her family there. Her three stepsisters and her stepfather were sitting out in the church already. She had considered asking them to be part of their wedding party, but in the end, she and Tommy had decided to keep it small.

"I don't get it." Karone said with a sigh. She was the fourth and final member of Kim's wedding party. Karone did not understand Earth's customs and Christian wedding practices, and she was really having a hard time grasping "something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue". Trini had tried to explain it to her but Karone had given up trying to figure it out.

Kim was glad that Karone agreed to be in the wedding. They had surprisingly talked more after the Sonic Force team was no longer needed. She supposed they were both more involved than the other realized before, and that sparked a relationship. She asked Karone to be a bridesmaid, and although she did not know much about weddings, she agreed. She figured it would be no different from being a bridesmaid in her brother's wedding.

Thinking about Karone in Andros' wedding reminded her of the Red Astro Ranger, which brought a smile to Kim's face. She was pretty sure he was seated out there, along with his best friend and Karone's boyfriend Zhane, his wife Ashley, and their newborn daughter. Ashley was the first of the rangers of Zordon's era to have a child and it had been a huge celebration. Karone was almost excited as the new parents, especially since the baby was the niece she had predicted, the niece she knew would grow up to be a red somewhere.

Molly shook her head. Her daughter's friend Karone was off but she could not quite put her finger on why. It was almost as though she grew up in a completely different culture than the rest of them. Yet she claimed to be an American, and in other ways, she fit in quite well.

There was a knock on the door and all the heads turned. The door opened slightly and a female figure poked her head in. "Hey." Carri said as she glanced around the room, sneaking in quickly and shutting the door behind her. "I'm not staying long. I just wanted to wish you luck."

"Thank you." Kim replied as she glanced over at the other woman. Since her ranger days ended, Carri and Kim had become friends. Carri had been the one to get her the job in Reefside, for which Kim was eternally grateful. It was easy for Carri, after all she was Angel Grove's best reporter, despite the fact that she had completely phased the "who are the power rangers" story out.

That was not the only story that she had dropped for the former rangers. She quit looking into the identity of Arnold, the advice columnist, after Rocky let it slip to Carri, Kim and Tommy that Arnold was in fact Jason. Jason had not been pleased to find out, but much to his relief Carri immediately dropped her inquiry, since she and Jason had since become friends. Although she did have a hard time ignoring protests from her cameraman Randy who had an obvious interest in Arnold. The members of the ranger community that were filled in on Jason's secret found it hysterical, and they were all now subscribers to his magazine. Kim and Trini had made a habit of looking at the magazine and online to giggle at Jason's advice.

The whole reason that Kim had become friends with Carri was that she and Tommy tried to spend a lot of time with all of the former rangers, one of whom Carri was firmly attached to. Her relationship with Rocky was moving quickly. Just recently, the duo moved in together. Where it would go from here, Kim did not know, but that was another relationship for her to keep an eye on.

Carri nodded and smiled in response. "I've got a seat to get back to so." Carri paused, watching as Kim looked at her oddly. She smiled and shrugged. "I told you I wasn't going to interrupt for long." Carri quickly wished her good luck one last time before heading back out to the church and her seat with some of the former rangers.

"I think she was running short on time anyway." Aisha replied with a grin as she watched Rocky's girlfriend leave. "We're supposed to start soon."

Kim sucked in a deep breath, and suddenly her nerves jumped to the forefront. It was not that she was nervous about marrying Tommy. That part did not faze her at all; she looked forward to being Mrs. Oliver and spending the next fifty years with him. The wedding ceremony part was making her nervous. Part of her found it silly. She had done things as a ranger, without nerves, that did not hold a candle to this in difficulty. Yet here she was freaking out about a simple ceremony.

"You're not going to back out are you sweetie?" Her mother asked, misinterpreting the nerves as her not sure she wanted to marry Tommy.

"Of course not." Kim replied quickly. She was not sure if her mom was over the whole her marrying her high school boyfriend thing and she wanted her mother to understand that the one thing she was sure of was marrying Tommy.

"It's normal to be nervous." Trini jumped in. She was more than a little nervous when she got married. Of course, she should have never married that man in the first place, but that was another story entirely.

Molly started to speak, but before she could add to Trini's thought the door popped open and a man's head poked in. "We're getting ready to seat the parents and grandparents." Rocky said as he tried his hardest not to look around. It was close enough to the ceremony that everyone should be decent, but Rocky declined to take that chance.

"That's my cue." Molly said as she leaned down and gave her daughter a hug. "Everything is going to be fine." She promised before she headed out the door and closed it behind her.

"He's cute." Charlotte commented after Rocky was gone. That thought had crossed her mind the first time she saw him as well but this was the first time she verbalized it.

Kim simply rolled her eyes. She had already commented that her soon to be husband was cute, she had hit on Tommy's best man Jason, and she had even batted her eyelashes toward Tommy's brother David. The only thing that stopped her from hitting on the fourth groomsman Michael is that he is her half brother. She hated to see what Charlotte would become when she was old enough to understand boys and dating a bit better.

She noticed Aisha and Trini, who both looked at each other and grinned. None of them quite knew how to respond to Charlotte. Fortunately they did not have to as their door swung open again, this time the church wedding coordinator entered. "Alright bridesmaids. You're with me." She said, holding the door open and waiting for the foursome to exit. Once they were gone, she turned to Kim. "I'll be back for you in a second." She said with a smile.

Kim nodded and turned, taking one last look in the mirror. Seconds later she was satisfied she looked fine. She hoped she looked more than fine, but she would let Tommy be the judge of that. It would not be long now before the wedding coordinator returned and whisked her off to make her grand entrance. There were so many thoughts swirling through her head and she was working hard to get them under control.

She thought about her friends, her family, her soon to be husband. She thought about how they made her happy, and how she was overjoyed that Cerlina was not trying to kill them anymore. She thought about the unknown number of years she had left to live and that how part of them would involve a commitment to Triforia. Before that, there would be the good fifty or sixty years she would get to commit to Tommy, which reminded her about her upcoming walk down the aisle. She hoped everything looked good and all went smoothly. She hoped she would not say the wrong thing standing up there in front of everyone she and Tommy ever knew. She hoped she would not trip. How embarrassing would it be for the red Sonic Force ranger to trip? She hoped…

"Kim." A voice said, pulling her out of her swirling thoughts.

Kim took a deep breath and worked hard to silence her thoughts. As she cleared her mind, she turned and smiled at the wedding coordinator. "Yes?"

"We're ready for you."

Kim nodded her head and stood, following the woman out of the room and down the hall. She arrived just in time to catch a glimpse of the last of the wedding party heading down the aisle and the doors shutting.

"When the doors swing back open they'll cue the music and you can head on down to your future husband." The woman said with a smile.

Kim positioned herself to head in. She was slightly nervous. All eyes would be on her. She did not even have anyone walking her down the aisle. She had not wanted to start the argument between her mother and her father over who was better suited to walk her down the aisle, her birth father or her stepfather. It was simply easier to walk herself.

She could hear the music in the church stop. The next thing she knew it started up again and the doors swung open. Kim's nerves exploded and she took a moment to gather herself before walking down the aisle.

Her first instinct was to look at everything but the people. The decorations had turned out beautifully and she found herself quite pleased by that. Of course, she could not stare at the decorations for long and eventually her eyes locked Tommy's. The black ranger was gaping at her and it made her smile and relax a bit. She could tell by his reaction that he thought she looked well above fine.

As she approached Tommy, the ceremony officially began. From then on, it seemed as though things were a blur. She was anxious to move past the ceremony part and get to the celebration. She listened to the speeches and repeated when necessary, and before she knew it there were rings being exchanged along with "I do's".

The one part she did focus on was the "you may now kiss the bride", as Tommy leaned down and planted a kiss on her lips with such passion that it caused his Dino Thunder team to squirm. "I love you, beautiful." Tommy whispered in her ear as the kiss came to its conclusion.

"I love you too." Kim whispered as Tommy moved back into a standing position. She saw Tommy smile at her and she eagerly returned the expression.

Seconds later, they were being announced to those in attendance, and everyone stood and cheered. They walked slowly back down the aisle and toward the door, and for the first time Kim absorbed all the faces in the crowd. They were their friends and family, those that cared about them and would do anything for them. They were the rangers they had served with, those who would always be willing to stand next to them and fight the good fight.

They were the reasons that Kim became a Power Ranger in the first place, and the reasons that she served when necessary now. They were the people who made her who she was today, the people she would do anything for.

As they exited the church, Kim knew that was not going to change. She would always do things for her friends, her planet. She would jump back in as an active ranger if that was what it would take. As Tommy leaned down and drew her into a hug and she leaned into his shoulder, she knew what had changed. She was no longer looking out for her friends and family as Kimberly Ann Hart. She would now and forever be there for them as Mrs. Thomas Oliver.


End file.
